President Michael D. Higgins signed a presidential pardon for John Twiss, who executed on 9 February 1895, at an event in Áras an Uachtaráin last week.

The pardon was granted following a recommendation by government ministers based on a report by Dr Niamh Howlin, which found that the nature and extent of the evidence against Mr Twiss could not safely support a guilty verdict.

Justice minister Helen McEntee attended the ceremony, joined by Mr Twiss’ great-grandniece Helen O’Connor and her family, as well as members of the Michael O’Donohoe Memorial Project, a group based in Kerry who have raised awareness of the case.

Speaking at the ceremony, President Higgins said: “The case of John Twiss has been one of long-standing concern for the people of Kerry, Cork and Limerick.

“Even before his execution, the Fermoy Town Commissioners wrote to the Lord Lieutenant asking him to exercise his prerogative of mercy in a petition accompanied with 40,000 signatures, a very substantial number to collect at that time in rural Ireland.

“Furthermore, the Governor of Cork Prison and the prison chaplain both stated their belief that Twiss was innocent while the jury in the coroner’s inquest stated that they believed in Mr Twiss’s innocence.

“While we at this remove cannot undo what happened, we do have the power to acknowledge that what happened to John Twiss was a great wrong.

“I am pleased to be able to formally grant a presidential pardon to him today, and to at least set the record straight. I hope that my doing so will bring a sense of closure to his family following almost 127 years. I commend them for their efforts.

“I would also like to commend the Michael O’Donohoe Memorial Project for their work to bring the case of John Twiss to public attention and their help in bringing the process of obtaining a pardon to fruition.”

The presidential pardon is only the sixth such pardon to be granted and the third posthumous pardon. It is the second time a pardon has been granted for a case predating the establishment of the State, following the pardon awarded by President Higgins to Maolra Seoighe (Myles Joyce) in 2018.