Lawyer Diarmuid Rossa Phelan, charged with murder, has eased bail conditions so he can take a “getaway” with the family

A SENIOR attorney charged with murder has eased his bail conditions so he can take a “quick trip” with his family.

The court today temporarily lifted the imprisonment and curfew on Diarmuid Rossa Phelan, 53, who is accused of killing a man in a farmland shooting in Dublin.

Judge Bryan Smyth granted the defense motion at Dublin District Court to allow for an upcoming two-day trip by the accused.

Mr Phelan, a law professor, is accused of murdering the father of four, Keith Conlon, at Hazelgrove Farm, Kiltalow Lane, Tallaght on February 22.

Mr Conlon, a dog breeder from Kiltalow Park in Tallaght, was seriously injured in an incident in the Hazelgrove area at the foot of the Dublin mountains.

After his dog was shot, Mr Conlon was shot in the back of the head and died in hospital two days later.

Mr Phelan was granted bail of €100,000 on “strict” conditions last month and his case was adjourned for the production of an evidence book.

Under the terms, he must reside at an approved address, observe a curfew there from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m., and register at a named Garda station between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. every day.

Today his solicitor, Karl Monahan, applied to Dublin District Court to have these three bail conditions amended “on a temporary basis” as the defendant was on a short trip.

The variant was to “facilitate travel within the jurisdiction for the accused and his family,” Mr Monahan said.

A lawyer for the prosecutor’s office said this was agreed. Judge Smyth said that if the court agreed, the bail stay and curfew conditions would be relaxed, along with the requirement to register at a Garda station.

The easing applied for a specified two-day period and Judge Smyth said full bail conditions would resume thereafter.

Mr. Phelan was not required to be present in court for the motion.

When he last appeared in court last month, his case was adjourned until July on formal orders from the DPP.

Instructions must be given before the accused can be tried.

The court then issued an order requiring prosecutors to early release Garda interview videos in Mr. Phelan’s defense. The state had opposed the request, saying it was “premature” while a full investigation file had not yet been sent to the DPP. Judge Smyth had said that while the disclosure request was “somewhat unusual,” it was required by law.

Mr Phelan was denied bail by the Supreme Court, but this was overturned by the Court of Appeals, which granted him bail.