Missiles thrown as murder appeals rejected

Two weighty copies of written judgments and rosary beads were hurled in the direction of three judges yesterday after they dismissed the appeal by five Limerick men against their convictions for the murder of crime boss Kieran Keane and the attempted murder of his nephew, Owen Treacy.

Two of the men angrily threw their copies of the 105-page judgments across the courtroom towards the judges' bench in the Court of Criminal Appeal and had to be restrained by gardaí, who had mounted a strong presence in the court.

Insults were also shouted at the judges, who appeared unperturbed, and at journalists and gardaí and there was some spitting by some of the men. Two young women who shouted abuse from the body of the court were escorted outside.

The angry scenes occurred after Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, presiding, announced the Court of Criminal Appeal's rejection of the appeals by Desmond Dundon (23), of Hyde Road, Limerick; David Stanners (34), of Pineview Gardens, Moyross; James McCarthy (27), of Delmege Park, Moyross; Christopher Costelloe (23), of Moylish Avenue, Ballynanty Beg, and Anthony McCarthy (24), of Fairgreen, Garryowen.

The appeals arose after all five men were found guilty at the Central Criminal Court in December 2004 of the murder of Keane at Drombana, Limerick, on January 29th, 2003, the attempted murder of Mr Treacy and of falsely imprisoning both men on the same date. Mr Justice Paul Carney jailed them for life on the murder counts and imposed concurrent 15-year terms on the false imprisonment charges.

Keane (36), of Garryowen, Limerick, had his hands tied behind his back and was shot once in the head in an execution-style killing. There was evidence he was tortured at or before the time of death. Mr Treacy (34), of Munchin's Street, St Mary's Park, Limerick, was stabbed 17 times.

Yesterday, the appeal court consisting of Mr Justice Kearns presiding, Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne and Mr Justice Brian McGovern, rejected all grounds of the appeal.

Mr Justice Kearns outlined in detail the circumstances of the abduction and murder of Keane and the multiple stabbing of Mr Treacy, both of whom were left for dead on the side of an unlit country road at about 9pm on the night of January 29th, 2003.

It was not disputed that the relevant backdrop to those events was the ongoing gang-related violence in Limerick, the judge said. The topic of the feud between Keane and the Ryan family - Edward and John Ryan had been murdered - and the consequences of it had been a matter of public debate before, during and after the trial.

Addressing complaints of non-disclosure until after the trial of material about nine incidents in connection with which Treacy was arrested, including three murders and firearms offences, the judge said Mr Treacy's associations and character were well known to all five men against the background of internecine feuding between families living near each other in Limerick city.

None of the late disclosed material related to the Keane killing, the judge said. Nor did it add significantly to information the defence already had about Mr Treacy's associations, previous convictions, involvement in gangland crime and feuding, or his credibility.

While the failure of the prosecution to make more detailed disclosure about the murder of Eddie Ryan was "not to be condoned", it did not render the convictions unsafe, he found.

The undisclosed material was "extremely thin" in regard to supplying ammunition for cross-examination of Mr Treacy, he said. The material also could not have been used without supplying "a clear motive" for the applicants for the events of January 29th 2003, thereby undermining defence arguments that Mr Treacy was an accomplice in his uncle's murder, the judge added.

On complaints about media publicity, the judge said it was "hardly surprising" the trial attracted enormous public interest and widespread press coverage. Ongoing gangland feuds in Limerick were, and remained, the cause of enormous concern to the local population and to the entire country, he said.

It would have been "quite impossible" to empanel a jury whose members were totally unaware of such background, he said. The appeal court would also reject defence arguments that the trial should have been adjourned to allow a "fade factor" apply.