"Idiotic" and "speculative" stories in the media about the murder of publican Tom Nevin in 1996 had no bearing on it being proved a contract killing and his widow Catherine being convicted, the Court of Criminal Appeal heard today.
Opposing the appeal by Ms Nevin (51) against her conviction in April 2000, after a 42-day trial, of the murder of her husband Tom at their pub, Jack White's Inn, on March 19th 1996, Peter Charleton SC, for the DPP, said counsel for Ms Nevin made a number of applications during her trial to permanently prevent the trial on the basis of adverse publicity.
He said the Irish people had a constitutional right to have a trial where there was a reasonable suspicion that a person had committed "a heinous crime".
Mr Charleton said the jury had deliberated for 26 hours and 36 minutes and there was nothing to indicate their deliberations were "anything but judicial".
He said the trial judge, Ms Justice Carroll, conducted the trial with the greatest control, decorum and fairness. She had prohibited the jury from reading newspaper or watching TV reports concerning the trial and had directed that articles could not refer to Ms Nevin's appearance or manner.
Ms Nevin is also appealing her conviction on three counts of soliciting three different men to kill her husband in 1989 and 1990, six years before his murder.
Some 20 grounds of appeal have been lodged including grounds relating to publicity, aspects of the trial judge's charge and the failure to direct separate trials on the counts of murder and soliciting.
The appeal resumes tomorrow before Mr Justice Geoghegan, presiding, Mr Justice Quirke and Mr Justice Peart.