Waterford man jailed for life for 'brutal murder' of 60-year-old man appeals conviction

Stephen Keane's lawyers argued admissions he made to gardaí should not have been admissible as evidence as he was without legal advice and intoxicated at the time

Lawyers for Stephen Keane argued on Thursday that his pre-detention conversations with gardaí and their notebook entries should not have gone before the jury. 

A man who was sentenced to life imprisonment for the "brutal, horrendous" murder of a 60-year-old man in Waterford has launched an appeal against his conviction, with his lawyers arguing admissions he made to gardaí should not have been admissible as evidence as he was without legal advice and intoxicated at the time.

Lawyers for Stephen Keane argued on Thursday that his pre-detention conversations with gardaí and their notebook entries should not have gone before the jury. 

It was submitted the trial judge erred in not excluding the evidence and there was a substantial risk these admissions undermined the defence of intoxication.

In May 2021, Stephen Keane, 33, of Coolfin Meadows, Portlaw, Co Waterford, was found guilty by a unanimous jury verdict of the murder of John Lowe, 60, at his Portlaw home on December 13, 2018. He had pleaded guilty to manslaughter but not guilty to Mr Lowe's murder.

During the trial at the Central Criminal Court, Keane had claimed he had an argument with Mr Lowe about an alleged theft of money from a silver box. Keane had claimed to have hit Mr Lowe with "one punch" and said he "knew he had killed him because he caught him clean". 

The defendant also claimed Mr Lowe came at him with a knife. However, gardaí found neither a silver box nor a knife. The trial heard Keane had consumed alcohol and drugs and struggled with addiction for the majority of his life.

Evidence was given by then deputy state pathologist Dr Michael Curtis that Mr Lowe suffered "multiple wounds", with the fatal blow being landed to the artery under the left ear.

Colman Cody SC, defending Keane, had argued at trial that his client was too drunk on the day to have intentionally killed Mr Lowe.

Moving to appeal his murder conviction on Thursday in the Court of Appeal, Mr Cody said the trial judge Mr Justice Paul McDermott erred in ruling that alleged admissions made by Keane to members of An Garda Síochána in the course of pre-detention conversations were admissible. 

He also submitted the trial judge had erred in ruling that Garda notebook entries relating to alleged admissions by Keane to members of An Garda Síochána were admissible.

Mr Justice John Edwards, who sat with Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy and Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, said the court would give judgement on June 15 next.