Verdict on bridge evidence causes a stir

Court sketch: As the packed courtroom gasped, Ian Bailey closed his eyes, leaned forward slightly, and whispered to himself. It was a rare and revealing moment.

For most of the case he stared impassively into the middle distance as witness after witness gave their evidence. Under fierce cross-examination over five days he rarely lost his composure. Even the judge, a seasoned observer of Circuit Court cases, was moved to comment that he was an exceptionally "cool witness".

But even Mr Bailey could not prevent an emotional flicker from registering when it became clear he was going to lose the majority of actions he had taken to restore his damaged reputation.

From early in the day the sense of anticipation was building up inside the old Atkins garden centre, the temporary headquarters of Cork Circuit Court.

For two weeks before Christmas the sight of Mr Bailey and his partner, Ms Jules Thomas, accompanied by a scrum of photographers and cameramen, had stopped traffic outside the courthouse.

Yesterday morning, without his partner, he evaded an even larger throng of Irish, British and French media by arriving early through a side entrance at around 9.15 a.m. By the time Judge Patrick J. Moran arrived it was packed with media, gardaí involved in the original murder investigation, barristers, members of the public and the local French consul, Françoise Letellier.

Judge Moran began his 40-minute judgment and listed the evidence given by individual witnesses and neighbours, contradicting statements made by Mr Bailey earlier in the case. When the judge said he accepted that Mr Bailey was a violent man, there was quiet murmuring around the room. When he said Mr Bailey "liked notoriety" and "courted publicity" there were more glances exchanged.

But the key moment came when the judge listed the evidence of Mrs Marie Farrell, one of a procession of neighbours, former acquaintances and shopkeepers, who told of their experiences with Mr Bailey. She was the woman who, in a nervous but determined voice a few weeks earlier, told the court she saw him at a bridge close to Ms Sophie Toscan du Plantier's house early on the morning of the murder.

"Mrs Farrell said she came here reluctantly," Judge Moran said, and paused briefly. "On the balance of probability, I accept Mrs Farrell's evidence that who she saw around Kealfadda Bridge was Ian Bailey."

An audible gasp went around the court. Solicitors looked up from their furious note-taking. And Ian Bailey closed his eyes, moved forward, and whispered to himself.

Whatever he felt like on the inside, by the time he left the courtroom yesterday, Mr Bailey seemed to have regained his old composure. Once again he stared impassively into the middle distance, battled his way through the hordes of media, and into a waiting car.