'The horror will never leave us': Thomas Dooley's widow recalls 'pure softy' who lived for his family
Siobhán Dooley speaking to the media outside court. Picture: Jim Coughlan
The widow of Tom Dooley recalled the ‘horror show’ at a Tralee cemetery and said on Tuesday she would never understand why her husband — “a pure softy, never a troublemaker” — would meet such a horrible death.
Life sentences for murder were imposed on Tuesday on five men of the Dooley name for murdering 43-year-old father of seven Tom Dooley — to whom they were all variously related — at Rathass Cemetery in Tralee in October 2022.
The murdered man’s widow, Siobhán, said afterwards about the man she met when they were both 16 and later married: “Thomas was the heart of the house. He was everything to us. And every time I look at my children I can see my husband in them so he will always be there with us.
“I want to thank the jury for their time and their effort in reaching the right decision and the prosecution team for their commitment in this lengthy trial. I wish to thank my family and my friends for their unwavering support.
"I want to thank Tralee Garda Station for their time and dedication during this investigation and their support for my family since Thomas’s passing.
“While we are grateful that the jury reached the right verdict, nothing will bring Thomas back. A dearly loved father, husband and grandfather.”
Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring said the murder of Thomas Dooley in front of his family while attending a funeral was unforgivable.
The judge said she had heard protestations of innocence and talk of miscarriages of justice.
"No explanation was ever proffered [for the attack on the deceased] and no explanation could excuse it,” Ms Justice Ring said.
Siobhán Dooley described on Tuesday how the murder of her husband before her eyes has affected her and her family in the days since October 5, 2022. She said they had “no idea of the horror show” waiting when they arrived in the cemetery.
She said her late husband was a “pure softy” and the way he was murdered was something that should happen to nobody and that certainly her beloved husband Thomas did not deserve it.
“I am lucky I have an amazing family and friends who have stood with me and the family,” Siobhán Dooley said.
The 34-day trial ended last Thursday with the conviction of 42-year-old Daniel Dooley of An Carraigin, Connolly Park, Tralee, Co Kerry, for the murder.
Earlier in the trial, the jury of 10 men and two women delivered guilty verdicts on 29-year-old Michael Dooley, of the halting site, Carrigrohane, Cork, Patrick Dooley, 36, from Arbutus Grove, Killarney — brother of the deceased, and on Thomas Dooley Snr, 43, and his son Thomas Dooley Jnr, 21, both from the halting site, Carrigrohane, Cork.
The mandatory life sentences were imposed on them by Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork for the murder of 43-year-old Tom Dooley from Hazelwood Drive, Killarney, at New Rath Cemetery, Rathass, Tralee, on October 5, 2022.
Thomas Jnr was additionally given a four-and-a-half-year concurrent sentence for assault causing harm to the dead man’s widow, Siobhán.
The teenager who was found guilty of murder was remanded in custody until October 29 for discussion of a legal issue regarding his sentencing.
Detective Sergeant Ernie Henderson and prosecution senior counsel Dean Kelly on Tuesday outlined the background to the murder, taking place less than a minute after the deceased entered the cemetery with his wife Siobhán and some of their children.
Her evidence was recalled of seeing her husband’s brother Patrick and his cousin and namesake, Thomas SNR, grinning as they approached the deceased to carry out the attack. She told her husband to run and he said to her he did nothing wrong and why should he run.
She described all of the accused men gathering around her husband hitting him with everything they had, blood spurting everywhere. Their weapons included a knife, an axe and other implements, both shiny and rusty. The 43-year-old father-of-seven died very soon afterwards.
“I first met Thomas in 1996 in Shannon, Co Clare, when I was 16 and he was also 16 years old. I was travelling with my family at the time and we moved from county to county. No matter where we were in Ireland Thoms would find out where we were and would appear out of the blue in each county we were in to meet with me. And this was back in the day before mobile phones or anything.
“He was always good fun and always laughing when around other people but when I would appear he would get all shy and quiet. His persistence paid off two years later when we finally got together in Tullamore and a month later we were married. We got married in Tullamore on the 23rd of June 1998.
“We had a very happy and content marriage and our lives were lived for our children. To describe Thomas as a father, his children always came first with him. He was 100% a family man and he was a doting father. We always went everywhere together as a family. The children always had him wrapped around their fingers… He was just so proud and honoured to be a granddad.”
Never one to be the centre of attention, Siobhán described her late husband’s pride and tears at the weddings of two of their daughters and the joy at the arrival of grandchildren.
“Thomas always had good time for everyone. He hated trouble or hassle and hated to see anyone suffer trouble or hardships and always tried to help people. He was a pure softy.
“What happened in the graveyard that day will have an everlasting impact on me. Every day, I see the horrible scar under my arm as a constant reminder of that horrible day — a scar that I will always have. Every day, when I wake from only a few hours sleep I think it’s all been a really horrible nightmare but then I’m thrown back into our new reality.
“I will never understand why Thomas was murdered in the most horrible way. He was such a softy who was never a troublemaker. And the way in which he left this world was just not fair to him. In his last words to me he told me to run so that [we] could be saved.
“It was important to me to be there [in court] for Thomas. I made a promise to Thomas on the day we put him in the ground that I would get justice for him. And justice we did get for him.
“As a family, we will never get over what happened to Thomas. That horror will never leave us. To lose someone to God is always hard but the way he was murdered is a death that no one ever deserves and certainly not my Thomas.
"I am blessed to have my babies and my grandbabies and together we will always talk about Thomas and keep his memory alive.”
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