Court archive
Court reports mentioning Cullaville, Armagh
2020-07-20 · Armagh
In the Central Criminal Court, Aaron Brady, 29, accused of capital murder and robbery, waived solicitor‑client privilege and gave a voluntary statement. His former solicitor, Daniel McNamee, testified that Brady had been advised not to testify if he had any involvement in the robbery and fatal shooting. McNamee explained that a witness statement does not carry the same legal protection as a suspect. Brady had previously told McNamee that he was loading diesel waste at a yard in Cullaville on the evening of the murder, but later claimed the forklift started and he spent 90 minutes to two hours loading diesel. Brady's statements to Gardaí on 5 and 6 February 2013 were voluntary. The trial, before Mr Justice Michael White and a 13‑person jury, continues with Brady pleading not guilty to both the capital murder of Garda Adrian Donohoe and the robbery of €7,000 in cash and cheques.
2020-07-13 · Louth
Aaron Brady, 29, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe and to a robbery of about €7,000 on 25 January 2013 at Lordship Credit Union, Co. Louth. In his first court appearance he denied killing the Garda, denied participation in the robbery, and denied ever admitting to killing the Garda. Brady said he was at a diesel‑laundering yard on Concession Road, Co. Armagh, at the time of the shooting and that he had lied to Gardaí about his movements to avoid implicating himself in diesel laundering. He described a prosecution witness, Daniel Cahill, as a "lying psychopath" and claimed Cahill had assaulted him on St. Patrick's Day 2015. Brady also said he had no involvement in stealing a Volkswagen Passat used in the robbery and that he was not at Lordship Credit Union that night. He admitted to lying to Gardaí after the shooting and again ten days later.
2020-07-02 · Armagh
In a Central Criminal Court hearing on 2 July 2020, retired Detective Inspector Pat Marry testified that Aaron Brady's account of his whereabouts on the night of 25 January 2013 was false. Marry said he did not believe Brady was at a diesel‑laundering yard on Concession Road, Co. Armagh, but that he was at Lordship Credit Union in Bellurgan, Co. Louth, where Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe was shot. Brady, aged 28, had pleaded not guilty to the capital murder of Donohoe and to a robbery of about €7,000 at the same location. Marry described the extensive CCTV analysis, phone‑traffic checks and witness statements that led him to conclude Brady's story was "bunkum and lies." The cross‑examination was set to continue before Mr Justice Michael White and a jury.
2020-02-18 · Armagh
At the Central Criminal Court, a man accused of the capital murder of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe has claimed he was engaged in diesel laundering at the time of the fatal shooting. Aaron Brady, aged 29, from Crossmaglen, Co Armagh, denies the murder of Det Gda Donohoe, who was shot at Lordship Credit Union in Bellurgan, Co Louth on 25 January 2013. He also denies robbing approximately €7,000 in cash and cheques from the same location. An alibi notice submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions states that Brady was loading diesel waste at a yard on Concession Road in Cullaville, Co Armagh, for between 90 minutes and two hours around the time of the shooting. Brady told gardaí previously that he had initially provided an inaccurate account of his movements owing to concerns about incriminating himself in diesel laundering activities. The trial, before Mr Justice Michael White and a jury, continues. Aaron Brady pleaded not guilty. Adrian Donohoe pleaded not guilty.
2020-02-17 · Armagh
At the Central Criminal Court, evidence emerged that Aaron Brady was subject to bail conditions and a curfew when Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe was fatally shot on 25 January 2013 at Lordship Credit Union in Bellurgan, County Louth. Mr Brady, aged 29 and from Crossmaglen, County Armagh, has pleaded not guilty to capital murder and to robbing approximately €7,000 in cash and cheques from the same location on the same date. Inspector Mark Phillips told the court that Mr Brady attended Dundalk Garda Station on 5 February 2013 to provide a voluntary statement. The accused outlined his background and movements in the days preceding the detective's death. A wildlife ranger also testified that he discovered a burned-out car on Cumsons Road in south Armagh on 26 January 2013, the day after the shooting. The trial before Mr Justice Michael White and a jury continues at the Central Criminal Court.
2015-10-20 · Louth
Michael McHugh, convicted of the 1985 murder of Garda Sergeant Patrick Morrissey, has lost a High Court action seeking his immediate release from prison. McHugh, with an address in County Armagh, was sentenced to death for the killing, which occurred following an armed robbery at Ardee Labour Exchange in County Louth. His sentence was subsequently commuted to 40 years penal servitude. McHugh argued he was entitled to credit for five months spent in pre-trial custody between July and December 1985, contending this entitled him to release after 30 years served. Mr Justice Paul McDermott dismissed the action, finding the court had no function in compelling the Minister for Justice to grant further sentence remission or commutation. The judge stated the Minister retained discretion to consider McHugh's claim but was not obliged to do so, and was entitled to consider the gravity of the offence. McHugh has served his sentence at Portlaoise Prison and is due for release in December. A related action remains pending before the High Court.
2015-07-27 · Louth
Michael McHugh, convicted in 1985 of the murder of Garda Sergeant Patrick Morrissey, is seeking immediate release from Portlaoise Prison in High Court proceedings against the Governor, the Minister for Justice, the Irish Prison Service, and the DPP. McHugh was originally sentenced to death, a penalty commuted to 40 years' penal servitude by President Patrick Hillery. He argues that he is entitled to credit for five months of pre-trial custody served between July and December 1985, which would mean his sentence expired on July 1, 2024. The State parties oppose the application, contending that McHugh has no automatic entitlement to this credit and that the authorities lack the power to adjust the sentence given the original death penalty. McHugh's counsel, Micheal Ó Higgins SC, submitted that the decision to ignore those months was wrong and that the failure to grant credit breaches his rights to natural and constitutional justice. He also challenges the rejection of his pre-release programme application. The defendants argue that McHugh does not have the power to take the five months into account as the original court sentence imposed was the death penalty. The hearing before Mr Justice Paul McDermott continues.