A High Court judge has again sent teacher Enoch Burke back to Mountjoy Prison, where he has already spent over 300 days over his failure to comply with an order to stay away from Wilson's Hospital School in Co Westmeath.
During what was at times a heated hearing on Friday, Mr Justice Mark Sanfey had offered to temporarily release Mr Burke from prison, in the hope that the teacher would use the time the school was on holidays to reflect on his position.
However, Mr Burke refused to address the court's proposal, and instead accused the judge of not doing his duty by ruling on what he claimed was an alleged lie told to the court by a solicitor acting for the school in a sworn statement.
Mr Burke, supported by members of his family, demanded that the court deal with the alleged lie over security arrangements that were made in the school, which had been reported this week by the Irish Independent newspaper.
Alex White SC, for the school, said the security was put in place in relation to a matter unrelated to Mr Burke, and was over a dispute with a contractor.
When Mr Justice Sanfey dismissed the teacher's submissions on that point, Mr Burke repeatedly demanded that the court "do its duty" and "deal with the lies".
Mr Justice Sanfey ruled that Mr Burke was not addressing the offer to be released from prison, and had made "insults" against the court and other parties, and was continually talking across and interrupting the judge.
When Mr Burke refused to cease, the judge directed that he be removed from the court.
Scuffle
When prison officers were in the process of removing the teacher from the courtroom, a scuffle ensued.
In addition, Mr Burke's brother Dr Isaac Burke was twice physically removed from the courtroom by gardaí.
After Dr Burke was removed from the court for the second time, having declined a direction from the court to behave, Mr Justice Sanfey said it was "a great shame and a disgrace to see such scenes in an Irish courtroom".
Earlier, Mr Burke's mother Martina, and sister Ammi were also directed to leave after interrupting the court.
Following Mr Burke's removal, Mr Justice Sanfey said he had "no option" other than send Mr Burke back to prison.
He said that despite efforts to give him an "out", the teacher was "behaving in a way" that suggests he wants "to remain in prison".
The judge said it was perhaps "too much to hope for" that an alternative to prison could be found which would coerce the teacher into complying with the court's order.
The judge adjourned the matter for further review to a date in June, although he noted that after what has been Mr Burke's fourth appearance before him, the situation had not altered.
Injunction
Mr Burke was brought before the court on Friday morning, when his ongoing refusal to comply with an injunction made last year was reviewed by the judge.
The judge had previously described the teacher's continued imprisonment as "a profoundly unsatisfactory situation".
When the matter was before the court in late February, the judge, who stressed that court orders must be obeyed, asked the school's lawyers to make submissions on possible alternatives to Mr Burke's incarceration, including the sequestration of the teacher's assets.
The court also noted that during his time behind bars, Mr Burke continued to be paid his salary pending his appeal against the school's decision to dismiss him.
The court also said Mr Burke was being imprisoned at a cost to the taxpayer, has not paid any of the fines imposed on him by the court last year, and has not paid any of the costs orders made against him by the courts in favour of the school.
Mr White told the court on Friday that the school had looked at alternative measures to ensure Mr Burke complied with the injunction.
Counsel said that while it hoped that the indefinite deadlock could be broken, measures such as the sequestration of assets, the enforcement of the daily fine imposed on the teacher last year, and pursing him for legal costs incurred to date have not and would not work.
There was no alternative to Mr Burke's imprisonment, counsel said, but added that the school did not object to the judge's proposal to release him for a period.
All the school wanted, counsel said, was for Mr Burke to comply with the order.
Mr White said in response to the newspaper article that security personnel had been temporarily put in place due to a dispute with a contractor.
In its submissions, the school had said it was against putting security there to prevent Mr Burke attending its campus as it would turn the campus into a prison-like environment.
During the hearing, Mr Burke said this position, as outlined in a sworn statement to the court, was "a lie" as the school had contacted parents to say it was putting security staff on the campus. Mr Burke demanded that the judge deal with that particular issue.
When the judge rejected Mr Burke's application, the teacher accused the court of "prioritising transgenderism" over his entitlement to his Christian beliefs.
The judge and the school rejected all of Mr Burke's allegations regarding the security.
'Severe disruption'
Mr Burke was jailed last September over his deliberate failure to comply with a permanent injunction restraining him from attending the school granted by the court in July.
The board claimed that Mr Burke had attended the campus every day when the current school year commenced last August.
His presence at the school had caused "severe disruption for staff and students", the board claimed.
Mr Burke was found to have "flagrantly breached" the July orders and was sent to prison "indefinitely" until he purges his contempt.
During his first stint behind bars, the Evangelical Christian spent over 100 days in Mountjoy Prison between September and December 2022.
Following his suspension from his teaching position in August 2022, Mr Burke was sued by the school over his failure to comply with a court order requiring him to stay away from the school campus.
He was released in December 2022 without purging his contempt.
He again started attending the school after the Christmas holidays, and the High Court imposed a daily fine of €700 on Mr Burke for each day he remained in contempt.
The teacher denies all claims and says his constitutional rights were breached by the school's direction that he refer to a student by a different gender.
