GUILTY Ireland - Shane Murphy, 26, stabbed to death, Pallasgreen, Co. Limerick, 30 Apr 2015

Gardaí are investigating after a man was stabbed to death in Co Limerick.
The killing occurred at around 11pm in the town of Pallasgreen.
Sources in the emergency services said they were responding to a call from a woman who claimed that she was being assaulted when they discovered the body of a man.
The man's body was found at a house in The Grove estate at the entrance to the town on the Limerick City side.

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Two Limerick city men who are accused of murdering another man at a house in Pallasgreen are to stand trial at the Central Criminal Court.

Gerard Hogan aged 32 of Raheen Square, Ballinacurra Weston and Dylan Hayes aged 21, who has an address at The Crescent, Kilteragh, Dooradoyle are each accused of murdering Shane Murphy, 26, at a house in The Grove, on April 30...

Previously, Limerick District Court was told he died following a “sustained and frenzied attack”.

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A jury has been selected for the trial of two Limerick men who are accused of murdering another man during a house party in a village in County Limerick almost two years ago.

Gerard Hogan, aged 33, of Raheen Square, Ballinacurra Weston and Dylan Hayes, aged 22, who has an address at The Crescent, Kilteragh, Dooradoyle are each accused of murdering Shane Murphy at a house at The Grove, Pallasgreen on the night of April 30, 2015.

Mr Murphy, 26, who was from Lee Estate in the city, died after he was stabbed more than 20 times while attending a house party.

It is alleged by the State he was subjected to a “sustained and frenzied” attack after a dispute erupted in a downstairs room at the house.

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At the Central Criminal Court this Tuesday, Graham Kelly told prosecuting counsel Paul Burns SC that he travelled to the house in Pallasgreen that day in a taxi with Dylan Hayes...

At one point Mr Kelly was drinking in the kitchen when he heard the girls screaming in the sitting room. When he went to find out what was happening he saw a fight going on between Shane Murphy, Dylan Hayes and Ger Hogan...

When he broke up the fight, Mr Kelly said Mr Murphy fell to the ground and was “bleeding in numerous places on his body.”

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In his evidence this Wednesday witness Graham Kelly agreed with Michael Bowman SC that the deceased man Shane Murphy headbutted his client – Ger Hogan – during an argument before the fight that ended in Mr Murphy's death...

Witness Ailish Flood told Mr Burns that she had been staying at the house, which belonged to Mr Murphy’s girlfriend, for about a month...

She said she saw the attack and thought the two men were throwing punches but later realised they were stabbing Mr Murphy.

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DNA on a screwdriver found at the scene of a fatal stabbing in County Limerick matched the deceased and one of the two men accused of his murder, a jury has heard.

In evidence at the Central Criminal Court this Monday, Sandra McGrath of Forensic Science Ireland said she matched the blood to Ger Hogan,34, of Raheen Square, Ballinacurra Weston.

The screwdriver, she said, was a standard Phillips head with a black and yellow handle. It had blood staining on the tip, along its length and on the handle.

When she generated DNA profiles from the stains, she found they matched Mr Hogan and the deceased Shane Murphy. The chances of those samples having originated from an unknown person she estimated at one in a billion.

She also took four blood samples from a serrated steak knife with an 11cm long blade that was found at the scene. All of those stains matched the profile of Shane Murphy.

Four blood stains on Dylan Hayes' coat and trousers matched the DNA profile of Shane Murphy.

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A jury has heard that a Limerick man died when a knife pierced his heart during a “violent and frenzied” attack, at a house in Pallasgreen.

In evidence at the Central Criminal Court this Wednesday, Deputy State Pathologist Dr Linda Mulligan said she identified 23 stab wounds plus scrapes and bruises on Shane Murphy's body and arms.

As well as the fatal wound to his heart he suffered injuries to his lungs, throat and liver and defence wounds to his hands.

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The jury also heard from interviews given by the two accused men to gardai the day after Mr Murphy lost his life.

Detective Garda John O'Connell said Mr Hayes was interviewed eight times at Henry Street garda station.

During the seventh interview Mr Hayes told gardai that he disliked Shane Murphy because Mr Murphy had called him a "junkie" and accused him of "goofing off", which he said means being stoned on heroin.

He said a row started and he took a knife which he used to stab Mr Murphy. When gardai asked where he stabbed Mr Murphy he pointed to his stomach and chest and said: “I stabbed him there and there.”

Later in the interview he told gardai: “I didn't kill him.”

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Evidence has concluded in the trial of two Limerick men who are accused of murdering another Limerick man at a house in Pallasgreen two years ago.

After the Prosecution closed its case this Thursday afternoon, Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy to the jury a legal issue had arisen which he wishes to consider overnight.

He explained to the jury that the evidence in the trial had finished and that the next step is for the prosecution and defence barristers to give their closing speeches.

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In his closing speech, this Friday, Paul Burns SC told the jury that the evidence they have heard should satisfy them that the two accused men are guilty of murder.

In his closing speech, Mark Nicholas SC, said his client – Dylan Hayes – m admits killing Mr Murphy, but asked the jury to rurn a verdict of manslaughter on the grounds that he had lost all self control at the time of the attack.

Michael Bowman SC, representing Ger Hogan, said the scientific evidence in the case had proven that his client did not stab the deceased and he called on the jury to acquit.

Pointing to the evidence given by a number of independent witnesses, Mr Burns said the people in the house who saw the “horrific and wholly unnecessary” attack had told them that they saw both accused attack Mr Murphy and that they were acting together.

He said the pathologist's evidence showed Mr Murphy suffered 23 stab wounds and other injuries including incisions to his hands that suggested he tried to protect himself from the knife attack.

Justice Patrick McCarthy will begin his charge to the jury on Monday.

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In his charge to the jury this Monday, Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said there are effectively two trials happening together and they must consider the charge against each accused separately.

For each man, there are three possible verdicts he said.

If the prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused intended to kill or cause serious injury then the correct verdict is guilty.

However, if the jury accepts that the accused could have been provoked into a total loss of self control as a result of something Mr Murphy said or did, then the correct verdict is manslaughter.

Mr Justice McCarthy said a not guilty verdict should be returned in either case if the jury accepts that the accused did not intend to kill or to cause serious injury to Mr Murphy.

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After returning to court this Tuesday afternoon, the jurors asked the trial judge several questions including if they could see the report of Deputy State Pathologist, Dr Linda Mulligan, who carried out a post mortem on Mr Murphy’s body.

However, Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy told the jurors they could not get the report but that he would be happy to read out the evidence given by the Dr Mulligan in the witness box.

The jurors also inquired if there was a lesser verdict than manslaughter available to them.

In reply, Mr Justice McCarthy said the only possible verdicts are guilty of murder, not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter, or not guilty.

The jury ceased deliberations at 4.23pm and is due back in court in the morning.

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Two men have been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of murdering a man at a house party that descended into violence.

Dylan Hayes (22) of The Crescent, Kilteragh, Dooradoyle, Limerick, was found guilty of the murder of Shane Murphy at The Grove, Pallasgreen, Co Limerick on April 30th, 2015 by unanimous verdict. Ger Hogan (34) of Raheen Square, Ballinacurra Weston, Limerick, was found guilty of the same offence by a 10-to-two majority.

Mr Murphy’s family hugged one another and cried once the verdicts were revealed on Wednesday and the deceased’s sister, Tracey Murphy, told the court: “We are doing a life sentence ever since Shane was cruelly taken away from us.”

After hearing the statement from Ms Murphy, Justice Patrick McCarthy imposed the mandatory life sentence on Hogan and Hayes who were immediately led away by prison officers.

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