The judge in the trial of south Dublin architect Graham Dwyer for the alleged murder of Elaine O'Hara this morning began to recount some of the key parts of evidence, as he saw them, to the jury.
Mr Justice Tony Hunt later discharged the jury of seven men and five women and asked them to consider their verdict.
Mr Dwyer (42), an architect from Kerrymount Close in Foxrock, is charged with murdering childcare worker Elaine O’Hara (36) on August 22nd, 2012.
He has pleaded not guilty.
Ms O’Hara’s remains were found in forestry on Killakee Mountain, Rathfarnham, Dublin, on September 13th, 2013.
Mr Justice Hunt recounted to the jury some of the evidence that was heard in the trial. This included that of Sheila Hawkins, the partner of Ms O'Hara's father Frank, retired Det Garda Ultan Sherlock, and Conor Guilfoyle, the jogger who last saw Ms O'Hara alive at Shanganagh.
Mr Guilfoyle had said Ms O’Hara had been carrying a bag at the time, which wasn’t seen in CCTV images of her.
Mr Justice Hunt said he would “venture to observe” that people sometimes leave bags in their cars.
“I personally don’t think it is an enormous point one way or the other,” he said.
He then moved to refer back to the evidence provided by deputy State pathologist Michael Curtis, which was read to the jury in its entirety. He said defence counsel Remy Farrell had "expressed a fear" that as Mr Curtis's evidence had been given in the very early days of the trial, it may not be "in the forefront of your minds".
“I want to put it in the forefront of your minds,” he said. “This is important in the defence case.”
Mr Curtis had said the cause of Ms O’Hara’s death was “indeterminable”.
Mr Hunt said that if, as alleged by the prosecution, documents found on Mr Dwyer’s computer in relation to stabbing women were to be seen as “a blueprint” for events to follow, they must be satisfied Ms O’Hara’s death was the result of a “frenzied knife attack”.
“Mr Farrell said...the absence of any damage to the bones…should cause you to have reasonable doubt at the very least,” said Mr Hunt. “It’s in that context that the concern arises.”
Mr Justice Hunt also spent some time reviewing the evidence provided by Gemma Dwyer, the wife of the accused.
Mr Justice Hunt said she had noticed that a spade was missing from their garden at Kerrymount Close and had twice identified what she believed to be this spade in pictures of a spade located near where Ms O’Hara’s remains were discovered at Killakee Mountain, Rathfarnham, Dublin, on September 13th, 2013.
“Now, in identifying the spade, she mentioned two things: stickers and splatters of orange paint,” he said.
“She described the fence being painted, and how the paint got everywhere and on everything when Mr Dwyer was painting the fence.”
“She said: ‘That was our spade’,” said Mr Justice Hunt.
He then reminded the jury that they must “approach everything in the case with the presumption of innocence”.
“Applying that to the spade, it’s an item that was found at the side of a mountain,” he said. “You must presume it was nothing to do with Mr Dwyer.”
It was up to the prosecution, he said, to lead them to the assertion that it was the spade from Kerrymount Close.
Mr Justice Hunt said Ms Dwyer had identified the spade because of stickers on it and “perhaps most importantly, the paint splattering”.
“It’s a mass produced product,” he continued.
“There are more than two such spades in the world, and the country.
“Ms Dwyer was absolutely adamant that she recognised this from the splatters on it. She said it got splatters when the fence was painted.”
Mr Justice Hunt said he was simply “commenting” on the issue of the spade and that it was up to them to decide if it was anything to do with Mr Dwyer.
He pointed out however that after Ms Dwyer’s evidence about the spade, it had seemed like “game set and match” in terms of the case.
“But of course you have to look at it in all of its facets,” he said, before reminding them of the forensic scientist who gave evidence the following day that the chemical composition of the paint on the spade did not match that which was taken from the fence in Kerrymount Close.
“At the end of the day, the inference was that they were similar but not the same,” he said.
“If it’s not a guilty item, it’s a coincidental item. The spade still went missing, sure. But was it the same spade? In spite of her identification of it, you need to be very careful.
“It’s not enough that they are similar,” he said.
“The spade’s important, or maybe it’s very unimportant.”
Mr Justice Hunt also said it was “an oddity” that Mr Dwyer had purchased a hunting knife and had it sent not to his home but “private and confidentially” to his workplace.
“He doesn’t do hunting,” he said. “It’s not required for the purposes of his architectural work. It apparently wasn’t used for model aircrafts.
“Why would a man who is strapped spend a hundred quid on a knife? I don’t know. Draw whatever conclusions you can.”
