Youth identified stabbing accused from garda photos, court hears

The jury in the trial of a 36 year-old man accused of stabbing another man causing him serious harm, has heard that a youth made a statement to gardaí following the incident during which he identified the accused from a set of 12 photographs shown to him.

Darren Duff, with an address at Doon Court, Poppintree has pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to causing serious harm to Stephen McCann on July 28, 2001 at Hillcrest Estate, Lucan by stabbing him.

Garda Geraldine Ennis told Melanie Greally BL, prosecuting, that she was approached by a youth on September 16, 2001 in relation to the offence. As a result of her conversation with him she took a statement from him at his home on the Hillcrest Estate.

Gda Ennis said the youth was shown a set of 12 photographs, one of which was of the accused. She said the youth pointed out Darren Duff .

Detective Garda Brian Walsh told the court that following Mr Duff 's arrest he refused to take part in a formal identification parade. When he was brought into a room for an informal parade he pulled his jumper over his head and stood behind a door.

Elizabeth Moore from the Garda Forensic Science Laboratory gave evidence that she received a set of thirteen knives in a wooden box. The court earlier hear that they had been found by gardaí in a house on Hillcrest Way during a lawful search.

Ms Moore said she found no trace of blood on the knives but that a 12 cm blade on one was bent and the tip of a 7.5 cm blade was also bent.

Under cross examination by Patrick MacEntee SC, defending, Ms Moore agreed that the knives may have been damaged in a "hundred and one different and innocent ways" and that it was beyond her expertise to comment on the significance of the damage.

The prosecution has now nearly come to the end of its evidence with only the cross examination of Gda Ennis remaining.

The hearing continues before Judge Frank O'Donnell and jury of seven men and five women.