Murder trial jury shown bloodstained clothing

There was a sense of shock in the Central Criminal Court today as the blood-soaked clothing of a man, alleged to have been murdered by one of his best friends, was exhibited.

The jury was shown the almost completely bloodstained white t-shirt that Alan Nolan (aged 28), had been wearing on September 8, 2007 when he was stabbed at his Ballyfermot apartment.

One leg of the navy and white tracksuit bottoms he had also been wearing was also heavily stained with blood and become stuck together.

The accused, Martin Toland (aged 34),of Walkinstown Park, did not raise his head to look at the clothes as they were exhibited for the jury of six men and six women.

He has pleaded not guilty to Mr Nolan's murder, and has also denied a second charge of recklessly or intentionally causing serious harm to James Carroll (aged 30).

Mr Carroll survived stab wounds to the heart and stomach, and has already given evidence in the trial.

There was shock and upset amongst Mr Nolan's relatives and throughout the court, as the clothing worn by the deceased, the accused and Mr Carroll, all bearing bloodstains, was displayed.

Earlier this week, the court heard that in his interviews with gardaí, Mr Toland said that Alan Nolan attacked him after they had initially rowed over prank phone calls the deceased had been receiving.

He said the dispute broke out at about 5am on September 8, after all three men had spent the night drinking and paying poker at Mr Nolan's apartment in Cedarbrook Walk.

Mr Toland said that after rowing downstairs, he went upstairs with Mr Nolan to sort things out, but the deceased pulled a knife on him and in the ensuing struggle, the accused got hold of the knife.

He repeatedly told gardaí that he'd been attacked first and he was acting in self-defence when he took the knife; “I'd no choice. What would you do if someone came at you with a knife, would you let them stab you?”

He said Mr Carroll appeared on the scene, said both men advanced towards him, while he backed towards the stairs, holding the knife in front of him “jabbing and swinging” it and telling the men to “get back, get back,”

He said he was in fear of his life and pleaded with the men to let him leave the house peacefully, but they kept coming forward.

The accused said all three stumbled and fell down the stairs, and as he was about to leave he saw Mr Nolan slouched over the couch bleeding, and knowing he'd been injured badly, called an ambulance.

He admitted to gardaí that he remembered the knife making contact with Mr Nolan once upstairs. The jury were also shown the duvet cover which had been taken from the deceased's bed: it bore a single bloodstain.

Mr Carroll has already told the court that when he went upstairs after hearing a commotion, he saw Mr Nolan lying on the bed, with the accused sitting astride his chest, using his legs to pin down his friend's arms.

In his evidence to the court yesterday, deputy state pathologist Dr Michael Curtis said that in his opinion, none of the five stab wounds Mr Nolan received could have been inflicted while the two men were in that position on the bed.

During their interviews, gardaí also put it to Mr Toland that more than a little pressure would have been needed to inflict the knife wounds suffered by Mr Nolan.

Dr Curtis told the court it was his opinion that moderate force had been used to inflict all of the stab wounds.

“On a single, arbitrary scale of mild, moderate, considerable and severe force, I would say at least moderate force was used to inflict the wounds,” Dr Curtis said.

During cross-examination by counsel for the defence, Mr Diarmuid McGuinness SC, Dr Curtis agreed that it was not his opinion that considerable force must have been used.

He also said it was also possible that four of the stab wounds Mr Nolan received could have been sustained when the men were struggling on the stairs.

The accused told gardaí that he could not remember stabbing his friend, and that it must have happened on the stairs.

The trial continues tomorrow morning before Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy.