Man, 74, accused of murdering Cork woman 42 years ago to go on trial

Judge told jury the majority of the witnesses who will be called to give evidence are from Cork or the Munster area

Noel Long is charged with murdering 54-year-old Nora Sheehan between June 6 and June 12, 1981, at an unknown place within the State. Picture: Collins Courts

A 74-year-old man will go on trial on Thursday accused of murdering a woman whose body was found in a wooded area in Cork 42 years ago.

Noel Long with an address at Maulbawn, Passage West, Co Cork was arraigned before the Central Criminal Court on Wednesday afternoon.

Mr Long is charged with murdering 54-year-old Nora Sheehan between June 6 and June 12, 1981, at an unknown place within the State. Her body was found by forestry workers at The Viewing Point, Shippool Woods in Cork six days after she went missing.

When the registrar read the indictment to the accused man and asked him how he was pleading, he replied: "Not guilty".

Mr Justice Paul McDermott swore in a jury of eight men and four women to hear the trial, which will begin before him on Thursday morning and is expected to last four weeks.

The prosecution case is being led by senior counsel Brendan Grehan, while Michael Delaney SC is heading up the defence team.

Addressing the jury panel, Mr Justice McDermott said the murder is alleged to have occurred in Cork and that the majority of the witnesses who will be called to give evidence are from Cork or the Munster area. 

Nora Sheehan's body was found by forestry workers in Cork six days after she went missing.

He said some witnesses such as forensic scientists are based in Dublin and there will also be a large number of Garda witnesses from Cork including a number of retired members of An Garda Síochána.

The judge said the former address of the late Ms Sheehan was Ballyphehane in Cork. He said Mr Long's former address was in Bishopstown and he now resides in Passage West.

Mr Justice McDermott warned the jury panel their role was to judge the facts of the case and to do that they must have no knowledge of those involved in the case or events said to relate to the alleged offence.

He added: "This case involves an alleged murder, it is important to bear in mind that cases of this kind sometimes receive media coverage and have done so in the past and it may be the case in this case".

In that context, the judge asked the jury panel not to have any regard to what may have been reported about the case elsewhere and not to go looking for information online either. "It [the case] is tried and determined in accordance with what you hear in court and nothing else, I want to emphasise that," he continued.

"If having heard or seen coverage of this case and you feel by reason of that that you can't bring an independent mind to bear on the allegation in this case then you should not serve — it is very important we have a jury of independent people who bring judgment to bear without preconception," he said.

The judge later stressed to the selected 12 jurors they should only be concerned with what they hear from within the "four walls of this court" and not what they hear from anywhere else.