A NUMBER of witnesses were called in the Brendan O'Donnell trial yesterday to rebut Mr O'Donnell's claim of a relationship with Ms Imelda Riney in the weeks before she disappeared in late April, 1994.
They included her sister, Marie, and former partner, Mr Val Ballance, who said they had stayed with Imelda at different times in April, 1994.
Both witnesses said Imelda was a strict vegetarian and would not have had meat in her house. Mr O'Donnell had claimed that Imelda had made him ham sandwiches.
Yesterday was the 50th day of the trial of O'Donnell (22), a native of Co Clare but of no fixed abode, who has denied 12 charges, including murder, false imprisonment and kidnapping, relating to events in the west of Ireland in 1994.
Today, closing speeches will be made. Mr Justice Lavan told the jury he would charge them on Monday and he expected to finish by lunchtime. After that the jury of six men and six women would be sent out to consider its verdict.
In court yesterday, Marie Riney said Imelda and her sister, Teresa, had arrived at her home at Milltown Malbay, Co Clare, on April 16th, 1994. They had gone to Teresa's house in Ennis and stayed overnight. The following day, she went with Imelda and her sons, Liam and Oisin, to Imelda's home near Whitegate.
Ms Riney said she had stayed at Imelda's house from then until April 22nd. She went with Imelda whenever she went out and the two of them spent most of the time working at the house.
She never saw Imelda leave the house with food or any package during that time, the witness said. The only time Imelda had gone out by herself was for 15 minutes to the shop.
She and Imelda had a relationship where they would discuss all matters of mutual interest, Ms Riney said. Imelda had never mentioned Brendan O'Donnell and she never saw Mr O'Donnell at the house. The first time she saw him was on TV.
Ms Riney said Imelda was a strict vegetarian and would not have had meat in the house.
Mr Val Ballance said he had arrived in Co Clare on April 23rd, 1994 - six days before Imelda disappeared. He had spent his time at her house. They would generally go to the shops and on other errands together. Imelda had gone off alone one day to a nearby school.
Mr Ballance said there was nothing he did not discuss with Imelda and she had never mentioned Mr O'Donnell. He had never seen Mr O'Donnell at her house and did not know him before his arrest.
Ms Meg Mitchell said she had taught Oisin Riney at a school in Tuamgraney, Co Clare, during the school year 1993-1994. She said the school was closed between March 31st and April 19th, 1994.
Dr Ivor Shortts, a clinical psychologist based at the Central Mental Hospital, said he had interviewed Mr O'Donnell between November 24th 1994, and December 12th, 1994, to do intelligence tests.
He said Mr O'Donnell presented with psychotic symptoms but this did not mean he was genuinely experiencing them. Dr Shortts said he had studied medical case notes on Mr O'Donnell and noted he was very manipulative. He had admitted to visual hallucinations and hearing voices.
Mr O'Donnell had shown no extreme distress about the voices which he would have expected Dr Shortts said. There were "serious inconsistencies" in his interview.
He said Mr O'Donnell had written a letter to "Adulef Hottler" two days before he had interviewed him in November, 1994. He believed certain words in the letter were deliberately misspelt. He said Mr O'Donnell had spelled his own name, Brendan, right on three occasions but later when asked to spell a number of names he had spelled Brendan as "Brainndean".
Dr Shortts said he had carried out a test on Mr O'Donnell which was used to determine faking. This showed "very strongly" he was faking and trying to present a deviant picture.
The witness said he believed Mr O'Donnell fell into at least the low average range of intelligence. He could "even be close to middle average".
Cross examined by Mr Tom O'Connell BL, defending, he agreed he had first interviewed Mr O'Donnell when the defendant had just come off a long hunger strike. He agreed persons on long hunger strikes could experience organic psychosis which causes distortion of thinking and hallucinations.
He agreed he had had no psychological reports available to him when assessing Mr O'Donnell. He agreed Mr O'Donnell's letter to "Hottler" was intercepted in Dundrum and was not part of any test.
He further agreed he had not fully completed any tests on Mr O'Donnell. He said Mr O'Donnell was not co operative. He said his clinical interviews and partial test results contained evidence that Mr O'Donnell was malingering and he believed he was simply playing games".