Three female students who are alleged to have engaged in violent altercations with one another, including an arranged fight, have taken a joint High Court challenge against their expulsions from Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT).
The three are seeking to overturn their expulsion from Dundalk Institute of Technology after four alleged fights - three on campus and one off campus - that occurred between January 30th and 31st last year.
The three actions were brought by Margaret Eyong Taku, Wendy Briggs and Christina Igweze, who allege their punishment was disproportionate, that alternative sanctions were not described to them as having been considered and that no reason was given by the college for their expulsion.
The allegations are that the three were involved in aggressive physical altercations with each other over the two days, which allegedly involved Ms Briggs having her head stepped on, the use of a wet floor warning sign and the pulling out of weaved hair.
In February 2024, a committee recommended that all three be expelled from the college and banned from its campus and grounds. The following April, an Appeals Committee of the college considered and rejected all three of their appeals.
The three were granted a judicial review by the High Court in July 2024.
Prior to their expulsion Ms Taku, from Tinnamona, Callan, Co Kilkenny and Ms Igweze of Knightsgate Avenue, Rush, Co Dublin were undergraduate students on the college's Bachelor of Science in Mental Health Nursing course.
Ms Briggs, from North Road, Drogheda, Co Louth, was an undergraduate student on the college's Bachelor of Science in Bioscience programme.
At the High Court on Thursday, Joe Jeffers SC, for the three women, said the sanctions against the three students were delivered without reasons and were disproportionate. He also argued that the appeals committee erred in not adequately explaining why it discounted other, lesser sanctions.
Mr Jeffers told Mr Justice Anthony Barr that the appeals committee had an obligation to be a “de novo” hearing - starting afresh - but in their deliberations considered the decision of the previous discipline committee.
Mr Justice Barr said it had been submitted to the court that Ms Igweze and Ms Taku had been "bullied" by Briggs and that a canteen altercation took place where a chair had been kicked.
The alleged incident then spilled into the corridor remonstration where Mr Briggs, it is claimed, attacked Ms Taku.
Mr Justice Barr said that it had been submitted to the court that there was a reference to a male connected to Ms Briggs who was described in papers as "a bodyguard" and told the other two women that he knew where they lived. The two women took this to be a threat and decided to go back to the college to "sort it out".
When the two returned to the college after 5pm on January 30th, 2024, an alleged second incident occurred in a corridor resulting in Ms Briggs fleeing the area.
The next day there is an alleged third incident of a "serious fight", said the judge, that was recorded by onlookers in a hospitality corridor during which it is claimed Ms Briggs grabbed a female student and hit her head against the wall.
Mr Jeffers said each applicant had apologised, accepted their behaviors were unacceptable and expressed their wishes to return to their studies after what was a first infringement for each student.
Counsel said the committees were required but had failed to consider proportionality, tell the students which sanctions it considered were inappropriate and show they had done so.
Michael J Howard SC, for the college, said there was no disproportionality to the decision to expel and that the question in the case was whether or not "no appeals committee could have come to the same decision to expel all three".
Mr Howard said that on January 31, the day after the first two incidents, two more fights broke out, one of which was recorded on campus. Counsel said an arranged fight then took place behind a shop, where Ms Briggs allegedly had her head stamped on.
Mr Howard said that in the alleged incident in the college, Ms Taku had her hair ripped off, which resulted in Ms Briggs being allegedly attacked with a floor sign until the college chef separated them.
Mr Howard said the girls knew what they did was foolish, admitted it, that one person had their head stamped on and that all three knew why they were expelled.
Mr Justice Barr said he would reserve judgment in the matter.
