Courts

Man sentenced to life in prison for ‘cowardly’ murder of grandfather in Co Kerry

Patrick Murphy (52) told to leave gathering at Joseph Brosnan’s home but then returned with a knife and stabbed him

Shaun Brosnan described his son Joseph’s killer as a 'coward' and said he hoped Patrick Murphy would spend 'every second' of the rest of his life in jail. Photograph: David Sleator
Shaun Brosnan described his son Joseph’s killer as a 'coward' and said he hoped Patrick Murphy would spend 'every second' of the rest of his life in jail. Photograph: David Sleator
Fiona Magennis
Mon Dec 16 2024 - 15:30

A man who stabbed his daughter’s neighbour to death, in what a judge described as a “cowardly” attack on a defenceless and unarmed man, has been sentenced to life in prison.

Patrick Murphy (52), of no fixed abode, had pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Joseph Brosnan (53) at Abbey Court, Tralee, Co Kerry on May 22nd, 2022. The jury unanimously convicted Murphy of murder after rejecting the defence case that he had been provoked.

Sentencing Murphy to the mandatory term of life imprisonment, Mr Justice Paul Burns said the deceased was a “decent man” who had been “viciously” attacked.

Mr Brosnan’s family delivered a victim impact statements in which they described him as a much-loved son, father and grandfather.

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Shaun Brosnan described his son’s killer as a “coward” and said he hoped Murphy would spend “every second” of the rest of his life in jail.

Mr Brosnan’s daughter, Rachel Dunne, said her son “had a special bond like no other” with his grandfather and is “still so traumatised from this tragedy” that he cannot bring himself to say the word “grandad”.

A Central Criminal Court jury heard Mr Brosnan had previously worked at a direct provision centre where he met and befriended a Polish man, Kamil Lisowski.

Mr Lisowski finished work at around 7.45am on May 22nd, 2022 and called to Mr Brosnan’s home at Abbey Court. The pair shared a few drinks and watched TV before Murphy, who had been visiting his daughter’s apartment across from Mr Brosnan’s, joined them at around 3pm.

Further drinking took place in the house and an insult was passed between Mr Lisowski and Murphy. Mr Lisowski slapped Murphy in the face, but things calmed down again and people shook hands. However, the court heard matters took off again and Murphy was asked to leave.

He came back at around a 6.45pm and apologised but was subsequently “pushed out vigorously” from the apartment and fell to the ground outside. Murphy returned a short time later armed with a large kitchen knife, which he used to stab the victim three times after Mr Brosnan opened the door and again told him to leave.

Ambulance and gardaí attended the scene but Mr Brosnan died in his apartment lying on his sofa. The second stab wound penetrated the pericardial sac around his heart, which caused massive bleeding and resulted in him dying “fairly rapidly”, the court heard.

Defence counsel Brendan Grehan SC argued that Murphy “acted in boiling blood, in a rage or out of control” after he “had the living daylights kicked out of him on the ground”. Mr Grehan suggested it was Mr Lisowski and possibly Mr Brosnan who hit the defendant on the ground, driving him into a rage, despite denials of this by Mr Lisowski.

The prosecution case was that there was no reason for Murphy to bring a knife to the apartment and that he had “a clear intention to kill or cause serious injury”.

“Mr Brosnan was entitled to refuse entry and if that involved pushing him [Murphy] out so be it,” Patrick Gageby SC said.