This article is from page 16 of the 2007-04-24 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 16 JPG
THE lid has been lifted on what should be the private lives of mem- bers of the O’ Dwyer family.
Over four days’ evidence, very per- sonal details of a north Clare fami- ly’s everyday life has been aired.
Each day, Patrick O’Dwyer sat alongside his mother, father and sis- ter. His mother’s support for her son was patently obvious. She regularly patted his knee or held his hand, told the jury there wasn’t “a bad bone in his body”.
This case is unique. The defend- ant, victim and chief mourners are all members of the same family. The pressure on Patrick O’Dwyer’s mother Claire was all too obvious throughout the trial, particularly as the harrowing details of how her youngest daughter met her death were aired publicly in court.
Claire O’Dwyer left the court as State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy gave evidence of Marguerite’s death, last Tuesday morning.
Her husband Paddy sat firmly through the evidence, mainly staring towards the ground, but sometimes looking ahead.
Their daughter Louise (22) sat alongside them throughout the trial. Claire and Paddy’s only liv- ing daughter remained eagle-eyed throughout the trial, but the strain on her face showed as the jury finally brought in its verdict.
The accused man sat hunched for-
ward and staring at the ground for the most part. Throughout the evidence, he remained focused on the floor and rarely raised his head.
He did wipe his eyes with a tissue on a number of occasions, notably when details of his interviews with
gardai were recalled.
He also shed tears when his fa- ther recalled him helping out on the family farm as a child and showed emotion when his mother sat in the witness box and told the jury what a wonderful son he was.
Patrick’s focus on the ground was cast aside during one particular part of the trial. As Mr Justice Paul Car- ney was delivering his charge to the jury, Patrick O’ Dwyer sat up straight and looked up at the judge. He also raised his head and looked at the jury
as it announced its verdict, just min- utes after 8pm last night.
Courtroom Number One was a flurry of activity during the trial. The front of the room was filled with so- licitors and barristers involved in the case. Behind them, several journal- ists noted the facts of the case.
Further back, in the public gallery, several gardai involved in the case sat close to family relatives and friends of the O’Dwyers, while a number of onlookers wandered in and out of the courtroom, intrigued by the harrow- ing details of a family tragedy.
Sitting to the right of the courtroom Sat six men and six women, whose job was crucial — it was the jury’s re- sponsibility to decide the outcome.
The trial judge pointed out that the jury was a bit older than the average LUMA CBE: CeB RBIS lonKM(OKmOleNot in age to the accused’s parents than to the accused man.
“You are a little bit older than the average jury … more common sense and more experience to draw on,’ was the opening remark made by the trial judge in his charge to the jury.
Ultimately, the jury used this com- mon sense and experience to find Patrick O’Dwyer not guilty of the murder of his sister, but guilty of manslaughter by reason of dimin- ished responsibility.