Three men and teenager to go on trial for murder of father of seven in Tralee graveyard

Trial set for Central Criminal Court in May next year

Thomas Dooley died after he was attacked by a group of men at Rath Cemetery shortly after he, his wife, and four of his seven children had attended the funeral of a close family friend.

Three family members and a teenager accused of murdering father of seven Thomas 'Tom' Dooley, who died after he was attacked by a group of men while attending a funeral at a cemetery in Co Kerry last year, will go on trial at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin in May next year.

The brother of the late Mr Dooley, Patrick Dooley, 35, with an address at Arbutus Grove, Killarney; Mr Dooley’s cousin Thomas Dooley Senior, 41; and that man’s son, Thomas Dooley Junior, 20, both of a halting site at Carrigrohane Road, Cork; as well as a 17-year-old boy are all charged with murdering 43-year-old Mr Dooley at Rath Cemetery, Rathass, Tralee, Co Kerry, on October 5, 2022.

Thomas Dooley Jnr is also charged with assault causing serious harm to the wife of the late Mr Dooley, Siobhán Dooley, at Rath Cemetery on the same date.

The fourth defendant, a teenager — who cannot be named because he is a juvenile — is further charged with the production of an article likely to intimidate or capable of causing serious injury while committing or appearing to commit serious harm to Ms Dooley on the same date.

The Central Criminal Court heard on Tuesday the boy is due to turn 18 years of age later this year.

Thomas Dooley’s wife Siobhan also suffered serious injuries in the course of the attack.

The late Mr Dooley, from Hazelwood Drive in Killarney, died after he was attacked by a group of men at Rath Cemetery shortly after he, his wife, and four of his seven children had attended the funeral of a close family friend. Mr Dooley’s wife Siobhan also suffered serious injuries in the course of the attack.

Defence counsel Brendan Grehan SC, defending Patrick Dooley, told Mr Justice Paul McDermott on Tuesday he was unhappy about the disclosure in relation to several juvenile witnesses in the case and he was looking for the taped interviews with these witnesses.

A solicitor in attendance for the Director of Public Prosecutions  informed the court there may be other accused in the case but that this would be resolved shortly.

Nine arrests

There have been nine arrests to date in relation to the killing of Mr Dooley.

Mr Justice McDermott asked the solicitor if it was intended that other accused would be added to the trial as this would add to the length of the case. The solicitor said this was not known at the moment.

Mr Justice McDermott set May 29, 2024, as the date for the four defendants' trial before a jury at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin.

The judge said he would give the whole of the Trinity term [May 29-July 31] to complete the trial and was anxious for the defendants to be provided with the case materials.

The case was listed for mention on July 10 next in the expectation that tapes and transcripts are furnished to the defence by that date.

Mr Grehan told the court if other accused persons are to be added to the indictment, then this should happen as soon as possible.

Mr Justice McDermott said there were an extensive number of accused persons involved in the case, who all had family members. He said there was a "clear interest" in the deceased's family attending the trial and he was sure this matter was being "borne in mind in terms of the venue".