Brother found guilty of murder of father-of-seven in Kerry graveyard attack

Patrick Dooley (36) of Arbutus Grove in Killarney, Co Kerry is a younger brother of the deceased. He was found guilty of the murder of Thomas Dooley at New Rath Cemetery, Rathass, Tralee on October 5, 2022

By: irishmirror.ie

Jul 19 2024
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Brother found guilty of murder

The brother of father-of-seven, Thomas Dooley, was found guilty today of the murder of the 42-year-old who died after he was attacked at a burial in a graveyard in Tralee, Co Kerry in October 2022.

Deliberations will continue on Tuesday in relation to his other two co accused Michael Dooley (29) of the Halting Site, Carrigrohane Road in Cork and Daniel Dooley (42) of An Caraigin, Connolly Park, Tralee. The two men are cousins of the late Thomas Dooley who are also facing a murder charge.

Patrick Dooley was found guilty of the murder following over 12 hours of jury deliberations at a sitting of the Central Criminal Court in Cork. He was found guilty by unanimous verdict.

Mr Dooley, who was living in Killarney in Co Kerry had been in the cemetery with his wife and four of his children aged 15, 12, 10 and 8 to attend a burial when the melee broke out.

Yesterday, two men and a teenager were found guilty by unanimous verdict, of the murder of Mr Dooley.

Father and son Thomas Dooley Snr (43) and Thomas Dooley Jnr (21) both of the Halting Site, Carrigrohane Road in Cork were found guilty of the murder of their namesake Thomas Dooley at New Rath Cemetery, Rathass, Tralee on October 5, 2022.

The juvenile, who cannot be named because of his age, was also found guilty of the murder. It took over eight hours of deliberations before the first three men were convicted of the murder yesterday.

Mr Thomas Dooley Jnr was also found guilty of assault causing harm to Siobhan Dooley, the widow of the late Thomas Dooley.

Thomas Dooley Snr and Thomas Dooley Jnr are respectively a brother in law and a second cousin of the deceased man. Thomas Dooley Snr was also a first cousin of the dead man.

The trial got underway on June 4 at a sitting of the Central Criminal Court in Cork. It involved substitute jurors who were only discharged when deliberations got underway on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Prosecution claimed during the trial that Mr Dooley died in an "honour killing." Dean Kelly, SC for the State, previously said that "honour" had been offended when a relationship between one of the late Mr Dooley’s daughters and one of the accused men had "broken down." However, this proposition was challenged by counsels for the men.

Senior Counsel Tom Creed, for Thomas Dooley Snr, described as "dog whistle rhetoric" the prosecution categorisation of the case as an "honour killing." He said that talk of "medieval violence" had no place in the case.

Evidence in the case was also heard from Siobhan Dooley. She said she and her husband and their four youngest children had travelled from their home in Killarney to attend the funeral of their friend Bridget O’Brien in Tralee, where her husband was attacked by a group of six armed men.

She said that Michael and Daniel Dooley were "actually grinning". She said that her husband’s brother-in-law Thomas Dooley Snr was carrying two weapons as he approached her husband.

"One was shiny and looked to be new, the other had a bit of rust on it — one had a round top, the other was a big chunk of a yoke — I had never seen weapons like them before.

"I said to my husband ‘run’ and he turned to me and said ‘Run? Run for what — I had nothing to run for'."

She said that Thomas Dooley Jnr was standing behind one of her sons and was about to swing a weapon at him, but she pushed her son out of the way and he ended up hitting her and cutting her under the arm.

"I knew they were going to do harm when I saw the weapons. I tried to squeeze in between them and my husband but there was no hope — all I could do was start scraping Tom’s (Thomas Dooley Snr’s) face and eyes with my nails to get him away from my husband."

The trial also heard evidence from University Hospital Kerry hospital registrar, Dr Muhammad Essa, who said that Mrs Dooley had sustained a "serious injury."

He said she had what appeared to be a 30cm (foot long) wound on the back of her shoulder.

"You could see the fatty tissue. It had gone to the layer under the skin. There was a dressing on the wound (administered by paramedics.) The blood of course was soaking the gauze. It was oozing blood."

He said that the wound went from the right shoulder of Mrs Dooley and extended to her armpit.

"It was not shredded. It was a clear cut. It happened (was caused) by something sharp."

Dr Essa told Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring and the jury that he gave Mrs Dooley 45 stitches and 30 staples.

"The staples were used because stitches wouldn’t hold it together. Staples are stronger and faster."

He said that Mrs Dooley was informed of the death of her husband Thomas whilst she was in hospital.

"We talked about the passing of her husband. She was very distressed. It was very sad. We had to give her (Siobhan) some sedation to calm her down."

Meanwhile, evidence in the case was also heard from Sion O’Driscoll who went to Rath Cemetery in Tralee on October 5, 2022 for the funeral of his aunt Bridget O’Brien.

He said that he had travelled from Cork for the funeral. He initially went to the funeral home and then the remains of Ms O’Brien were taken from a motorised hearse to a horse drawn carriage for the final procession to the graveyard.

Mr O’Driscoll said that he was serving as a pallbearer when he told his father to "get under the coffin" in his place.

"I heard screaming down the end of the graveyard. I ran down and I saw a man lying dead. It was Thomas Dooley. I knew him well. He was a good friend. He was a quiet man.

"Siobhan was cut as well. It looked like an X or something."

He said that he didn’t witness an attack on the person of Mr Dooley or his wife. However, he did notice people running to the gate.

"There was lots of people running out. I saw the Dooleys running out."

The trial also heard evidence from State Pathologist Dr Sally Anne Collis. She carried out a post-mortem on the deceased on October 6, 2022 in a mortuary across the street from the New Rath Cemetery.

Dr Collis visited the scene of the altercation. She noted blood stains and clotted blood on the grass in the graveyard. Gardai informed her that a machete had been recovered in grass adjacent to the cemetery.

Dr Collis said that the body of Mr Dooley showed no signs of asphyxiation. Signs of medical intervention were noted.

A stab wound was recorded on the back of the deceased. It was 5.8 centimetres in length and one centimetre in width with a depth of over six centimetres. The jury heard that the wound had damaged the smalls bones in the spine.

It also caused haemorrhage around the spinal cord. Dr Collis said that the degree of damage sustained to the back would have required moderate to severe force.

A stab wound was also noted on the right upper thigh with "significant blood loss." This was a cut of over 10cm which transected Mr Dooley’s femoral artery. It also punctured one of his veins. There was also an incision wound to the upper leg which was 7.8cm in length.

Dr Collis said that Mr Dooley sustained a blunt force injury to the head. Haemorrhaging also occurred in the right temple area.

Dr Collis said the clothing worn by the deceased on the date the altercation took place had evidence of blood staining. His jeans were heavily blood stained while socks also had specks of blood.

Dr Collis also logged a chop wound on the right upper arm which was 25.5cm in length, 5cm in width and 13cm in depth. She said that the chop wound was caused by a "sharp implement — the sharpness of the blade incised the wound." Fatty tissue and muscle was exposed.

Abrasions and bruising was recorded on multiple areas in the body. Dr Collis said the cause of death was sharp force injuries resulting in blood loss. A machete which gardai found in the area of the cemetery was also shown to the jurors during the trial.

The late Thomas Dooley was laid to rest at Clonminch Cemetery in his wife's native Tullamore, Co Offaly on October 13, 2022 following a requiem mass at the Church of Assumption in the town. The deceased man is survived by his wife, three sons and four daughters. He lived at Hazelwood Drive, Ballyspillane in Killarney.