A 29-year-old man who repeatedly stabbed a woman at a Kilkenny shopping centre suffered from a psychotic illness that remained untreated for years before the killing, a murder trial jury has heard.
Shane Smyth (29), with an address at McGuinness House, Evans Lane, Kilkenny, is charged with murdering Mairead Moran (26) on May 8th, 2014 at the Market Cross Shopping Centre in Kilkenny City.
Mr Smyth has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Moran by reason of insanity.
Opening the case for the prosecution, John O’Kelly SC told the jury that when the indictment was read to Mr Smyth his response was not guilty by reason of insanity “which is a plea that is open to a person under the Criminal Law Insanity Act.”
“If such a defence is raised by an accused person, they are required to prove that defence to you,” he said.
Mr O’Kelly said the factual evidence of the case would not be disputed and the “major factor in the case” is whether or not Mr Smyth was suffering from a mental disorder at the time. He said that two consultant psychiatrists had prepared reports indicating Mr Smyth was suffering from a form of psychosis at the time.
Mr O’Kelly told the court the evidence in this case will be that Mr Smyth attacked Ms Moran with a knife and stabbed her repeatedly. “She died from a stab wound to her trunk through her heart,” he said.
Late shift
Prosecution counsel told the court that on May 8th 2014 Ms Moran was working “the late shift” in the Holland and Barrett shop in the shopping centre. “There was no one else in the shop at the time but people were around the shopping centre,” said counsel.
The court heard Mr Smyth had known Ms Moran “years earlier” in their late teens when they went out together for a “brief period of seven months” after which they went their own ways.
Counsel said Ms Moran was away for some time and when she came back to the area, she started working in the Holland and Barrett store.
Counsel said the court will hear evidence that Mr Smyth had been diagnosed in 2005 as suffering from schizophrenia, and had treatment for a number of months at the time in a psychiatric hospital. Since then he had been “back out in the community.”
The court heard Ms Moran and Mr Smyth met very seldom over the period but in the months leading up to May 2014, Mr Smyth had become aware of where Ms Moran was working and had confronted her on a previous occasion.
“He had in fact spat at her and this was disturbing for her, she was upset about it,” said counsel.
At 8pm on the evening of May 8th 2014, counsel, said Mr Smyth came into the shop and started speaking to Ms Moran “quite aggressively.”
The court heard Ms Moran was in tears and a security man saw what was happening and spoke to Mr Smyth, asking him to leave.
Counsel said that “within five minutes” Mr Smyth was back in the shop again and “this terrible attack took place.”
Dragged outside
The court heard Ms Moran was “stabbed repeatedly” with a knife which Mr Smyth had brought to the scene. She was then dragged outside.
Mr Smyth was then disarmed and put sitting on the ground as people attended to Ms Moran who was “very seriously injured.”
Counsel said Mr Smyth then hopped up from the ground and “ran out of the centre.”
“He got a taxi to a cousin’s house who lived on the outskirts of Kilkenny,” said counsel.
Upon arrival at his cousin’s house, Mr Smyth told his cousin he had stabbed “his ex-girlfriend.”
Gardaí were told where Mr Smyth was and he was later arrested.
The court also heard that Mr Smyth’s mental illness had “the effect that he would not have been able to refrain from doing what he did.”
The trial continues.