White has had a fractious relationship with the tribunal. There have been numerous findings made that place him at the centre of a web of garda corruption in Co Donegal.

After the release of the latest reports last month, all the emphasis was placed on the failure to have White fired from the force when his corruption became apparent nearly six years ago.

Twice he has been charged with offences arising from investigations into Donegal.

Each time a jury acquitted him. In the eyes of the law, he is an innocent man. In this module of the tribunal he is required to answer allegations that he mistreated Roisin McConnell while she was in custody in Letterkenny.

The casual observer might conclude that Donegal's woes began and ended with White.

Such an observation also suits the garda hierarchy, among whose ranks are officers of whom serious questions have gone unanswered. White is a handy cop to have around in these heady times, a great man to draw the heat.

Dodgy cops don't get much sympathy, but everybody is entitled to be treated fairly. On Tuesday, O'Carroll attended the tribunal. White's counsel requested that the medical evidence be heard in private.

The man was entitled to his privacy, particularly in the highly sensitive area of mental health. Morris said no. He would only request the media not to release sensitive details and he would also allow a range of others, including a psychiatrist attending for research purposes, to hear the doctor's evidence.

White's lawyer wasn't playing ball. His client didn't want his condition aired publicly.

The lawyer requested an adjournment for a day.

Request denied. He requested an adjournment for 10 minutes to get instructions.

Request denied again. O'Carroll did tell the court that he had referred White to a residential treatment programme for three weeks to treat his illness. In the end, Morris said he was applying to the High Court to compel White to attend.

The dismissive attitude to White's privacy contrasts with the treatment of another turbulent witness in tribunal land.

In 2000, Charlie Haughey told the Moriarty tribunal he could no longer attend hearings into where he got all his money.

Moriarty investigated. He obtained medical reports which were for "my eyes only", he told the inquiry on 7 December that year. Moriarty took Haughey's privacy seriously.

He asked to be released from the promise of confidentiality to consult with the legal team, but nobody else was given access to the reports. No doctor was required to attend in court and give details of Haughey's illness. No morsels were thrown in the public domain for titillation. His privacy in relation to sensitive health matters was respected.

Few people are worried about White's plight. Yet he is as entitled to be treated as fairly as anybody else. All that is required is to trust the presiding judge not to have the wool pulled over his eyes. Moriarty did the job in Haughey's case. Why couldn't Morris do the same?

Last week's kerfuffle once again put the spotlight on White, the public face of all that is rotten in the gardai.

But what about those in the upper echelons of the force who allowed White and others to run amok in Donegal? What about the garda reports on Donegal which preceded the setting up of the tribunal? All had about them the look of circling the wagons.

For instance, in August 2000, commissioner Noel Conroy reported on Donegal to the secretary of the Department of Justice, blaming Frank McBrearty Snr for disrupting investigations, and private detective Billy Flynn for interfering. Morris found that McBrearty and his family were greatly harassed by the force and Flynn was a key man in uncovering the corruption. There was precious little criticism of officers in Conroy's report.

White is a handy cop to have around all right, a great man to draw the heat, while others get on with their careers, reforming a dysfunctional force.