Closing arguments in murder case

The main issue in the trial of a Dublin man accused of murdering a woman with a lump-hammer is whether he was so provoked by the deceased biting his penis that he temporarily lost his self-control, a jury in the Central Criminal Court were told today.

Mr John O'Neill (aged 57) from Mercer House flats, Mercer Street in Dublin has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter but not guilty to the murder of Rosemary Dowling (aged 49) at his flat between October 24 and 25, 2005.

Her naked body was found wrapped in bedclothes near his flat in the early hours of Tuesday October 25.

In his closing speech, defence counsel, Mr Brendan Grehan SC, said the case really boiled down to whether the accused was so provoked by the actions of the deceased that he temporarily lost control.

He said the deceased and the accused were both alcoholics but that they differed insofar as the Mr O’Neill was still regarded as a quiet, inoffensive man, while Ms Dowling had a violent temperament when drunk- as evidenced by her multiple convictions for being drunk and disorderly.

He said these convictions 'would not matter a toss' if the defence of provocation had not been raised.

He said outrage they might feel because of the 'terrible' events which followed Ms Dowling biting his penis, should not disentitle him to the defence of provocation.

This defence could be seen as "a concession to human frailty," he said.

He added: "Not all of us, all of the time, can keep total control in all circumstances."

He added: "if provocation isn't the explanation for the horrible way John O'Neill acted on the night in question, then what is?"

Referring to an injury at the entry to the deceased's vagina, he said he did not know why that was there, but suggested the possibility that during the assault, Mr O'Neill tried to hurt the deceased in the place where she had hurt him.

In his closing for the prosecution, Mr Luán O'Braonáin BL, said the accused must have had time to "cop on to himself" after the deceased bit his penis because he picked up the lump-hammer from the side of his bed and followed her into the hall.

He said while there were no charges of a sexual nature being brought against the accused, an injury to the genitalia of the deceased was identified and that had to be kept in mind when considering the credibility of the accused's account.

He also asked them to consider why Mr O'Neill threw the bottle of wine which the deceased had been drinking into a bin in St Stephen's Green, when he did not get rid of other cans from which she might have been drinking.

He then asked how it was possible for the accused not to remember cutting her throat when he remembered everything else about the attack.

In his charge to the jury, Mr Justice Paul Carney said that when considering the defence of provocation, "the question is not what a normal or reasonable person would do, but whether this particular accused, with his own particular background was so provoked as to cause him to lose his self-control".

The trial before Mr Justice Paul Carney continues today when the jury of ten men and two women will begin their deliberations.