A Tralee man who stabbed his friend and neighbour “in boiling blood” after being kicked out of his apartment has been convicted of murder. The jury rejected Patrick Murphy’s case that he was provoked.
The 12 jurors at the Central Criminal Court deliberated for just two hours and two minutes before returning the unanimous verdict against Murphy (52) who had accepted that he killed his friend, Joseph Brosnan. Murphy, of no fixed abode, had pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty of the manslaughter of Mr Brosnan, at Abbey Court, Tralee, on May 22nd, 2022.
During the trial, they heard Murphy made admissions to gardaí, saying: “I am responsible. I was in fear so I picked up the knife.”
The trial heard they the deceased man had lived in an apartment at Abbey Court. He had previously worked in a direct provision centre on the outskirts of Tralee town where he met and befriended Polish national Kamil Lisowski.
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Mr Brosnan helped Mr Lisowski settle in and move from apartment to apartment and they became good friends, prosecution counsel Patrick Gageby SC told the jury. On the date in question, Mr Lisowski finished work at about 7.45am and called on his friend Mr Brosnan.
Mr Gageby said drink was taken and the pair sat and watched television together. At about 3pm that afternoon, Murphy called over to Mr Brosnan’s home. Further drinking took place in the house which resulted in some insult passing between Mr Lisowski and Murphy, counsel told the jury.
“It fizzled out but not before Mr Lisowski had slapped Murphy in the face,” said Mr Gageby. Things calmed down and they shook hands but the matter “welled up again” and Patrick Murphy was asked to leave.
The barrister said at about 6.45pm, Patrick Murphy returned and apologised. The jury heard that Murphy was “pushed out vigorously” of the apartment and fell to the ground outside. A short time later Mr Brosnan opened the door to Murphy again and told him to leave.
Counsel said Murphy was “armed with quite a large kitchen knife and used it to stab Mr Brosnan”. The deceased was stabbed three times, with a second stab wound to Mr Brosnan’s back proving fatal because it penetrated the pericardial sac around the deceased’s heart which caused massive bleeding and resulted in death occurring “fairly rapidly”.
Counsel said Mr Brosnan “was well aware that he was seriously injured” and told Mr Lisowski, “I’m dying”. “Ambulance and gardaí were called but unfortunately he [Mr Brosnan] died in his apartment lying on his sofa,” said Mr Gageby.
The prosecution case was that Murphy had “a clear intention to kill or cause serious injury”. The jury also heard from a number of gardaí, including Garda James Fairbrother who spoke to Murphy at the scene.
Murphy told the garda that he was “a peacemaker and he didn’t know who had stabbed the deceased”. When he was arrested and interviewed, Murphy suggested that the victim had possibly suffered a seizure before eventually admitting that he had brought a knife to the scene and that he had stabbed Mr Brosnan.
Outlining a summary of the evidence in the case on Wednesday, trial judge Mr Justice Paul Burns reminded the jury that they had heard evidence from residents who said they heard arguing from the vicinity of Mr Brosnan’s apartment, with one woman saying she saw Murphy holding a knife in his hand. The woman said Murphy “wasn’t in this world”, as his eyes were “real big” and he looked confused.
Another witness said she heard glass breaking and saw a man with a rock and a knife, while further evidence was given by a waitress from a nearby restaurant, who said she could see and hear a man shouting and screaming at the door of the apartment, describing him as “going psychotic”.
Kamil Lisowski also gave evidence to the trial, telling the jury that Murphy had come to the door “to revenge” and had stabbed Mr Brosnan “like rapid fire”.
“My best friend was dying in my hands,” the eyewitness told the jury. The jury heard that Murphy told gardaí that he started drinking and taking tablets before scuffles broke out on the day. He said the men had been drinking brandy, vokda and wine, while he had also taken tablets and shared them around.
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“I know it was me. I had the knife. I know I was the one with the knife,” Murphy told gardaí, going on to say that Mr Brosnan was a friend of his all his life. “Look, I had the knife, I am responsible. I was in fear so I picked up the knife. I don’t remember stabbing Joe, but I must have.”
After the jury of eight men and four women returned their verdict, Mr Justice Burns thanked them for their time and attention during the trial, excusing them from jury service for the next seven years.
The matter was adjourned to December 16th for victim impact statements and sentencing, with Murphy remanded in custody.
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