Man found guilty of manslaughter of sister's partner

A 24-year-old man has been found not guilty of murder but guilty of the manslaughter of his sister’s partner, after a stabbing in Co. Mayo last year.

Fintan McKenna (aged 24), of Woodlands, Balla, Castlebar had denied the murder of Francis ‘Frankie’ Heneghan in Kiltimagh, Co. Mayo on August 12, 2009

Mr Heneghan, a construction worker and father of three, bled to death in a laneway seconds after being stabbed 11 times.

After four hours and 37 minutes of deliberations over two days, the jury of eight women and four men brought in a majority verdict of 10/ 2 on the 10th day of the trial at the Central Criminal Court.

The prosecution argued Mr McKenna, originally from Artane in Dublin, didn’t get on with Mr Heneghan and at the time of the killing there was considerable animosity between the pair because Mr Heheghan was cheating on Grace McKenna, the sister of the accused.

They claimed Mr McKenna stabbed Mr Heneghan 11 times following an altercation in a laneway at the side of the Tavern pub in Kiltimagh.

During the course of the trial, the jury heard evidence from Sinead McGinty who said Mr Heneghan had stayed with her in Kiltimagh, prior to his death, because Grace Mckenna had kicked him out of their home in Ballyheane outside Castlebar.

A number of young witnesses, who had been drinking with Mr McKenna on the night of the killing, gave evidence they saw Mr Heneghan challenge Mr McKenna to a fight down a laneway, but he refused.

Lucia Finn told the court, she saw Fintan McKenna take a knife from Kevin Carmichael and put it in his pocket.

Mr McKenna told gardaí in interviews he took the knife to protect himself because he was afraid of Mr Heneghan, who he claimed had ‘’cut people up’’ in the past.

Finbarr Manley gave evidence he was with Mr Heneghan minutes before his death, on Main Street eating chips when gardaí arrived and told them to move on.

He said Mr Heneghan spotted someone down the laneway, at the side of the Tavern pub, and he sprang forward throwing punches at the man who was there.

Seconds later, gardaí followed the men into the laneway and discovered Mr Heneghan lying on the ground, bleeding profusely and struggling for breath.

Deputy State pathologist, Dr. Khalid Jaber, told the court Mr Heneghan died from significant blood loss caused by multiple penetrating stab wounds to the heart, lungs and neck.

Of the 11 stab wounds suffered by Mr Heneghan the most significant and fatal was to the left ventricle of the heart, measuring 8.5cm in depth.

Mr McKenna admitted to gardaí he stabbed Mr Heneghan twice in the chest in self-defence, but insisted he couldn’t have killed him.

In his closing speech, senior defence counsel Mr Martin Giblin told the jury the correct verdict in the case was not guilty of murder or at most guilty of manslaughter on the grounds of self-defence.

He described Mr Heneghan as "seething with rage’’ and claimed Mr McKenna was subjected to a savage attack in a dark laneway and he took steps to defend himself.

However, prosecuting counsel, Ms Pauline Walley SC, said it was well established Mr Heneghan and the accused had a bad relationship but that did not matter, all that mattered was what happened in the laneway when Mr McKenna met Mr Heneghan armed and ready.

Mr Justice John Edwards thanked the jury for the great attention they gave to the case and exempted them from further jury service for a period of five years.

Justice Edwards remanded Mr McKenna to appear before him again on December 20 for sentencing.