52 year old Riad Bouchaker has been accused of trying to murder three children in Dublin's city centre on 23 November 2023.
The trial judge told jurors on Monday at the Central Criminal Court that it is inevitable that they have already been exposed to the case due to the significant amount of publicity it received at the time and also the events that occurred afterwards. However, he asked jurors to be open-minded and objective to the trial.
Bouchaker has recieved eight charges, all of which he has pleaded not guilty to. He has been charged with attempted murder of two girls and one boy, assault causing serious harm to a childcare worker, three counts of assault and one count of the production of a knife.
The judge stated that the aftermath had nothing to do with the event itself, he said that jurors should not bring any prejudice to the trial. He said that Bouchaker was entitled to a unbiased and open minded jury who could focus on the evidence presented in court.
“Examine your minds or conscience very closely before you go on the jury, and be able to honestly answer the question: ‘Yes, I can approach this case in an open-minded and impartial way, bearing in mind at all times the presumption of innocence,’” he said.
The judge told panel members that Bouchaker was suffering from an acquired brain injury but there is "no suggestion Mr Bouchaker was suffering from a mental disorder at the time of the incident such that it raises any of the special defences that arise".
“The verdict available will be the ordinary one, so ‘guilty’ or ‘not guilty’,” the judge said.
Bouchaker had suffered a benign brain tumour before the event, and had brain surgery by way of a craniotomy in 2021. The judge stated that the court would hear that Bouchaker suffered a head injury requiring significant treatment in the aftermath of the event in 2023. His brain injury has impacted his ability to sustain concentration and they needed to accommodate him to ensure he recieved a fair trial. He will also have a Arabic interpreter to help him with language and evidence.
Nine men and three women have been sworn in as jury for this case, the trial is set to open on Wednesday and could remain open for up to 5 weeks.
