Man found guilty of killing brother
A father of four has been found guilty of killing his brother in a street fight in January last year.
The jury of seven women and five men took just less than five hours and 40 minutes to reach a majority verdict of 11 - 1, finding 27-year-old Patrick McDonagh of Bridge Court, Roslevan, Ennis, not guilty of murdering his brother Charlie (aged 30), at Bridge Court, on January 28 last, but guilty of his manslaughter.
The prosecution eventually entered a nole prosequi in relation to a third charge to producing a knife at the scene after the jury failed to reach a verdict.
After drinking about three cans of Guinness each, they opened a bottle of vodka. Charlie rang his brother Patrick, who lived a couple of doors away, and he soon arrived with a bottle of Coke to use as a mixer.
Charlie wanted to watch 'Winning Streak' but the reception was bad. Mr Ward agreed with defence counsel Mr Brendan Nix SC, in cross examination, that Charlie's television had been damaged some time before when he was in a rage.
Patrick invited the other two men over to his house where they could continue watching the television. They continued drinking, joined for a while by Patrick's wife Donna.
When the vodka ran out they got a taxi to a local off licence. Charlie bought cigarettes and Patrick bought two more bottles of vodka.
Back at Patrick's house Charlie decided he wanted to go to a night club. He rang a relative who lived nearby who agreed to bring the three men into town.
A row developed over whether or not Patrick should go with them. He went back into the house and Charlie followed him. The row quickly developed into a full-blown fist fight.
Patrick told gardaí he was afraid Charlie would throw him over the upstairs banister.
In his evidence, Mr Ward conceded that Charlie had a volatile temper and had one bitten him in a fight. During the row that night Patrick suffered a broken nose, a split lip and a slashed ear lobe.
After a while, Charlie left the house to move his van. As he was leaving Patrick broke the driver's window. Mr Ward went back to Charlie's house and locked himself in. Patrick left his house and headed across to his brother's house picking up a brick as he went.
During the trial neighbours told the court how they saw him smash the glass in the front door, shouting for Mr Ward to come out. After smashing the front windows Patrick went back to his house. Mr Ward ran out of the house and over to a relation's house for shelter.
The gardaí were called and arrived a short time later with an ambulance. Patrick was taken to the hospital where he received treatment for his split lip.
Charlie drove over to his father's house where he was met by his brother Ned and a brother-in-law, Connie. Ned told the court that Charlie was "very upset".
He seemed drunk and was very upset about the fact that Patrick had broken the window of his van. Ned tried to calm him down, telling him they could sort everything out in the morning.
When Charlie tried to drive off Ned reached into his van for the keys. In the struggle that followed the key was broken. Charlie got out of the van, banging the side of it with his fist as he did so. He advanced on Ned telling him owed him a car key before running off down the road in search of a taxi.
The jury heard that Charlie told the taxi driver not to stop when his brother pulled up in a van. Charlie said he was being chased and told the taxi driver he intended to kill the brothers who had trashed his van.
There were still gardaí at the scene when the taxi pulled up but Charlie said he would wait until they left before getting a slash hook and sorting things out himself.
When he saw the damage Patrick had done to his house, Charlie became incensed. He ran to Patrick's car and started kicking it, trying to break the windows.
A neighbour, Cara Moylan, brought him and Mr Ward into her house for tea. Charlie borrowed Ms Moylan's phone and there were several phone calls to Patrick, during which Patrick demanded compensation for his injuries and Charlie used an insulting childhood nickname, "Paddy Pudding".
Charlie then went through to the kitchen and carefully selected a knife to bring when he confronted his brother. He dismissed one knife for being too sharp and another for being too small before settling on a third, which he hid up his sleeve.
He took off his top as he headed to the door and went out onto the street bare chested and waving the knife.
Patrick heard him shouting "Come out, come out, Paddy Pudding" and despite the attempts of his wife and sister Ann Marie to stop him going outside, he grabbed a hatchet from near the back door and went out to his brother.
His sister and brother-in-law went out to stop the fight and eventually managed to disarm the brothers. Ann Marie threw the knife and axe in opposite directions and soon after Charlie and Patrick were pulled apart.
Charlie was pulled towards his house by Ann Marie's husband and Mr Ward and Patrick walked towards his wife. But as he neared her, he picked up the knife lying on the ground, turned, and ran back towards Charlie.
Charlie received 12 knife wounds, and died a short time later from a stab wound to the stomach which punctured a major blood vessel.
Mr Justice Paul Carney thanked the jury for their careful deliberations and exempted them from further jury service for the rest of their lives.
He remanded Mr McDonagh on continuing bail until his sentencing in May.
