In short

A round-up of today's other stories in brief...

A round-up of today's other stories in brief...

Fresh swearing-in for Geoghegan murder trial after jury discharged

A fresh jury will be sworn in this morning for the trial of a man accused of murdering Shane Geoghegan in Limerick over two years ago.

The trial was due to open at the Central Criminal Court yesterday, but Mr Justice Paul Carney discharged the jury of seven men and five women before proceedings could get under way.

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“For reasons I’m not going to go into at this stage, I have to discharge you from service,” he said. “You’re not to attend with the jury panel tomorrow morning.”

Barry Doyle (24), Portland Row, Dublin, and Hyde Road, Limerick, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Geoghegan (28), a member of Garryowen rugby club.

Mr Geoghegan was shot dead in a suspected case of mistaken identity at the Kilteragh estate near Dooradoyle on November 9th, 2008.

The trial is expected to last up to four weeks.

Family claim  damp forced move

A family have claimed before the High Court they had to quit their newly built home in Co Kildare over fears for their health and safety.

Niamh and George Burrowes and their two children moved into their home in Johnstown, Co Kildare, in 2004. Less than a year later they had to leave due to severe dampness.

They have sued Dwyer Nolan Developments Ltd, Stonebridge Cross, Shankill, Co Dublin, and heating contractors Kevin McDonnell and Martin Lynch Heating, Stadium Business Centre, Ballycoolin Road, Dublin.

€241,689 paid to Healy-Rae firm

Healy-Rae Plant Hire Ltd, Main Street, Kilgarvan, owned by councillor Danny Healy-Rae, was again among the main plant hire and haulage contractors to Kerry County Council in 2010, according to figures released by the council at its monthly meeting in Tralee this week.

The sum of €241,689 paid out to Healy-Rae plant hire was considerably down on previous years, in line with a downturn in hiring by the council. Clancy Plant Hire, Knockanure, Listowel, was the highest earner last year and was paid €319,507 for work, according to the list.

Man paid to register as child’s father

A man accepted money from a Chinese woman so that she could register him as her child’s father in an attempt to obtain an Irish passport for the child, a court was told yesterday.

Graham Hopkins (44), Headford Road, Galway, and Roulan Lin (26), College Road, Galway, pleaded guilty at Galway Circuit Criminal Court to giving false information to a registrar on April 20th, 2009, contrary to section 69 (3) of the Civil Registration Act, 2004. They also pleaded guilty to giving false information in connection with a passport application.

John O’Donnell, defending, told the court that Lin, who came to Ireland in 2004, gave birth to a child here in 2009. She was afraid the child would not be allowed to remain with her and she paid Hopkins €3,500 to name himself as the child’s father.

Judge Raymond Groarke deferred sentencing to May 19th.