Death of Sophie Toscan du Plantier

Sophie Toscan du Plantier
Born (1957-07-28)28 July 1957
Paris, France
Died 23 December 1996(1996-12-23) (aged 39)
Schull, Ireland
Cause of death Beaten to death[1]
Nationality French
Occupation Television producer
Parent(s) Marguerite Bouniol
Georges Bouniol[2]

Sophie Toscan du Plantier (28 July 1957 – 23 December 1996) was a French producer of arts programmes for television[3] beaten to death outside her holiday home near Toormore, Schull, County Cork, Ireland, on the night of 23 December 1996. She was the wife of another film producer, Daniel Toscan du Plantier.

Her death remains unsolved.[2][4][5] Journalist Ian Bailey was arrested twice in relation to the murder, but maintains his innocence.[6] He is due to be tried in absentia in France after winning a legal battle against extradition.[7]

Extradition case

The Sophie Toscan du Plantier incident was at the centre of an extradition case surrounding a prime suspect in the case, Ian Bailey, and the desire of the French authorities that he be brought to France to be questioned.[8]

In February 2010, a European Arrest Warrant was issued by a French magistrate which led to the High Court in Ireland granting an extradition order.[9] This was appealed to the Supreme Court by Mr Bailey.[10] In March 2012, the appeal was granted by the Irish Supreme Court.[11] All five judges upheld the appeal on the ground that the French authorities had no intention to try him at this stage; four of the judges also upheld the argument that the European Arrest Warrant prohibited surrendering Mr Bailey to France because the alleged offence occurred outside French territory and there was an absence of reciprocity.[12]

In March 2017, Bailey was arrested in Ireland on foot of a European Arrest Warrant issued by the French authorities. The warrant sought to extradite Bailey to France to stand trial for the voluntary homicide of Sophie Toscan du Plantier and the High Court of Ireland endorsed the warrant. Bailey immediately instructed his legal team to oppose the application.[13] Bailey was successful in avoiding extradition, and in 2018, a French court ruled there was "sufficient grounds" for Bailey to face trial in absentia.[7]

Bandon phone recordings

In 2014, when it came to light that phone calls at Garda stations had been secretly recorded, there were claims that some recordings from Bandon Garda station had evidence of irregularities in the Toscan du Plantier investigation. The Fennelly Commission, a commission of investigation established in April 2014 by the then government of Ireland, includes within its terms of reference both the recordings generally and the Bandon allegations in particular. The sole member of the commission is Nial Fennelly, a retired justice of the Supreme Court.

References

  1. ↑ Helm, James (19 January 2004). "'Black cloud' of unsolved murder". BBC News. Retrieved 6 October 2008.
  2. 1 2 Phelan, Shane (14 July 2008). "High-profile killing remains unsolved over a decade later". Irish Independent. Retrieved 6 October 2008.
  3. ↑ http://www.liberation.fr/planete/1996/12/25/sophie-toscan-du-plantier-tuee-en-irlande_190147
  4. ↑ "Mother of Sophie Toscan du Plantier 'will have no peace until killer caught'". Irish Times. 20 September 2010.
  5. ↑ Day, Elizabeth (4 July 2010). "Du Plantier murder: village of Schull in West Cork is braced for new moves in case that shattered its peace". The Guardian. London.
  6. ↑ O'Connor, Alison (4 April 2014). "Long political silence over garda conduct during Ian Bailey case". Irish Examiner. Archived from the original on 31 March 2015. Retrieved 4 April 2014.
  7. 1 2 "British man to face trial in France over 1996 murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier - France 24". France 24. 2018-02-03. Retrieved 2018-04-23.
  8. ↑ "Ian Bailey allowed to appeal extradition". RTÉ News. 13 April 2011.
  9. ↑ "Bailey arrested as French authorities up extradition bid". Herald Newspaper, Ireland. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  10. ↑ "Ian Bailey's lawyers seek leave to appeal". Southern Star Newspaper, Ireland. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  11. ↑ "Ian Bailey wins appeal against extradition". Radio Telefís Éireann, Ireland. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  12. ↑ "Ian Bailey wins extradition appeal". Irish Times Newspaper. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  13. ↑ "High Court endorses Ian Bailey European Arrest Warrant". RTÉ News. 30 March 2017.
  • Ralph Riegel 2011, 'Shattered – Killers Do Time, Victims' Families Do Life, Collins Press
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