Harbison explains cause of death in trial

A man who was stabbed six times in the face and neck with a screwdriver died from inhalation of blood and bleeding to the brain, a murder trial jury heard today.

State Pathologist Dr John Harbison said one of the stab wounds punctured the tongue and penetrated the spinal cord at the back of the brain.

Dr Harbison noted that the deceased man, Mark Egan, also had a number of arm abrasions

consistent with defensive injuries.

Mr Egan had sustained a number of earlier injuries including fractured ribs, and cuts and bruises, which did not contribute to his death.

Dr Harbison told the Central Criminal Court that he noted six stab wounds to the face and neck. One of these extended to the root of the tongue. Another wound penetrated the larynx, resulting in bleeding to the airways.

Dr Harbison said death was caused by shock and haemorrhage.

Questioned by the prosecuting counsel, Mr Patrick McCarthy SC, Dr Harbison said the wounds were consistent with being inflicted by a Philips screwdriver of the type produced in evidence.

Asked about the degree of force necessary to inflict such injuries, he replied: "that would have taken

some force."

Mr Martin Merrigan, aged 34, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter but not guilty to the murder of Mark Egan at their flat at Loreto Court, Rathfarnham, Dublin on March 1 2001.

In other evidence, the court heard that the accused admitted to gardai that he had hit Mr Egan on a previous occasion.

The two were both chronic alcoholics and were having a homosexual relationship. The accused said he became angry when Mark Egan spoke about another man with whom he had become

friendly.

Garda Aubrey Steedman, Rathfarnham, told the court that when questioned about older blood marks found in the bedroom Mr Merrigan allegedly admitted that they were "from the last time I hit him".

At around 1.45am or 2am on the night of the killing, they had a row. The accused claimed Mark Egan "charged towards me".

According to Garda Steedman, the accused told gardaí he picked up a fork from his dinner plate, stuck it in the deceased's neck and pulled it out again.

He pushed him away, went into the kitchen and removed a screwdriver from the drawer. The accused claimed when Mark Egan "came at me again" he stabbed him with the screwdriver.

"He slid down on the ground like a sack of spuds", hitting his head on two planks of wood lying on the floor. "It was moment of madness through drink" he allegedly told gardaí.

The accused said he did not realise Mark Egan was dead until the next morning.

Another witness, Mr Stephen Carney, told the court that he met Mr Egan around Christmas 2000 when the deceased came into the shop where Mr Carney worked as a security guard.

He told prosecuting counsel that Mr Egan was fairly dishevelled and it was obvious he was a heavy drinker. "He was very quiet, he didn't look well, he just kind of shuffled along."

Mark Egan came into the shop practically every evening after that. The witness said he often lent him £10 to buy cigarettes. Some five weeks before his death, he came into the shop looking as though he had been badly beaten.

He had a broken nose, black eyes, cuts and bruises.

"The beatings got worse. He looked like he had teeth marks on his nose," the witness said. Mark Egan appeared to appreciate the small loans and would seek to repay Mr Carney with bars of chocolate.

"He tried to give me flowers on one occasion...I thought it was very odd," Mr Carney added.

The witness last saw Mark Egan when he came into the shop the night before he was killed. "He'd been beaten up again ...he just left".

Asked if he ever saw Mark Egan with the accused, Mr Carney replied: "No, never."

The trial continues tomorrow when the defence opens its case.