O'Donoghue prosecutor: Intention is main issue

The jury at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork was today invited to conclude that Wayne O’Donoghue was guilty of the murder of Robert Holohan.

This submission was made to them by prosecution Senior Counsel Sean Murphy, who summed up the case as presented by the State.

Mr Murphy SC told the seven women and five men that the central issue in the case was one of intention.

However, he said that they were not concerned with the issue of motive.

“The issue of intention comes back very much to conduct: what did Wayne O’Donoghue do? What was the natural consequence of his action?

“Motive is not relevant, intention is the issue.

“You must put yourself in the shoes of Wayne O’Donoghue. Look at the situation at the time. What did Wayne O’Donoghue think he was doing?

“What was the natural, probable consequence of what he was doing?” Mr Murphy SC asked.

Defence senior counsel Blaise O'Carroll, who has commenced his address to the jury, said the prosecution wanted the jury to have a dark interpretation of every event in the case.

"Any reasonable person looking at the pre-existing relationship and then the randomness of the meeting between Wayne and Robert that day, someone saying he intended to kill Robert, he intended to cause serious injuries, would strike you as completely absurd.

"It does not have the ring of truth about it.

"That Wayne O'Donoghue suddenly transformed into a murderer and forms this dark intention: 'I am going to kill you, Robert, my brother, I am going to kill you, Robert, my brother, I am going to seriously injure you.'

"That is what the prosecution is saying was going on in the brain of Wayne O'Donoghue," Mr O'Carroll SC said.

For the prosecution, Mr Murphy SC said there was tragedy for the Holohan and O’Donoghue families in this case but that the over-riding tragedy was that an 11-year-old boy with his life in front of him had that life snuffed out.

“For Robert Holohan, January 4 was another day in his holidays. You heard evidence of his mother, his grandfather and that evidence seems to display him as cheerful and in good form,” he said.

Mr Murphy said the jury would have to assess what Wayne O’Donoghue said to the gardaí and as to whether it was true or self-serving.

Mr Murphy asked the jury to consider the description given by Wayne O’Donoghue of the killing of Robert.

“He does not say that Robert said anything. He does not describe how he looked,” he said.

The prosecution SC said the fact that Wayne O’Donoghue was angry at the time did not take away the issue of intention.

Going through evidence of pathologist Marie Cassidy, he highlighted injuries to Robert Holohan’s back and bruises to his shoulders and buttocks.

He also referred to evidence that Robert was not wearing shoes when his body was found and he linked this to evidence that Robert always removed his shoes when he walked into the O’Donoghue house.

Wayne O’Donoghue (aged 21) of Ballyedmond, Midleton, Co Cork, denies murder but admits manslaughter.