Joe O’Reilly murder appeal to be heard today

The Court of Criminal Appeal will today hear the appeal by Joe O'Reilly against his conviction for the murder of his wife Rachel in north Co Dublin in October 2004.

Lawyers for both parties have agreed the hearing will last around three hours.

Thirty-year-old mother-of-two Rachel O'Reilly was bludgeoned to death in the main bedroom of their family home in the Naul, north county Dublin in October 2004.

Her body was discovered by her mother a number of hours later.

Joe O'Reilly was charged in 2006 and his trial began a year later.

The prosecution's case was largely reliant on circumstantial evidence, including that of mobile phone records which placed his mobile in the Naul at the time of the murder.

The jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict on July 21.

Today, his lawyers will challenge his conviction at the Court of Criminal Appeal on a number of grounds.

Those will include that the mobile phone records and the statement he gave to gardaí the evening of the murder should not have been admitted.