A man cleared of murder was called a 'smelly b*****d' in court by an angry member of the public after the jury's verdict was delivered. Patrick Murphy, 35, of Drumcairn Parade, Dublin, was found guilty of manslaughter at the city's Criminal Courts of Justice on Wednesday.
Murphy killed 'intruder' Jordan Ronan, 20, who had stolen from his unlocked van and broken into his partner's car. As the verdict was given, members of Mr Ronan's family left the court, with one man shouting: 'Smelly bastard... A 20-year-old boy. He was half your age.'
Judge Kerida Naidoo apologised to the jury before he remanded Murphy in custody ahead of sentencing on January 26. Murphy told the court he was defending his family and property, but Judge Naidoo told jurors they had to decide whether the force used was justifiable.
Prosecuting, Patricia McLaughlin SC told the jury Mr Ronan suffered a single, fatal stab wound to the chest in the early hours of July 26 last year. The court heard Mr Ronan had been with friends Rhys Murphy and John Green, and that he had been drinking and 'chilling and smoking weed'.
Jurors watched CCTV of the killing, including footage from Murphy's own Ring doorbell. It showed Mr Ronan entering Murphy's driveway, getting into his van and his partner's BMW. Murphy then opened his front door and rushed down his drive, with the fatal encounter taking seconds. The killer removed the door camera, but Gardai recovered the footage from Murphy's partner's phone.
Ms McLaughlin said the force used by Murphy was 'disproportionate to anything Jordan Ronan had done', noting the knife penetrated the chest cavity, lung, heart and liver to a depth of 18cm. Defending, Ronan Kennedy SC told the jury: 'Whatever you may think about Mr Murphy’s actions, he is not a murderer.' He said Murphy acted out of sheer panic in the heat of the moment, with his family at home.
