2026-01-13
'Honour killing' convict was misidentified at trial, lawyers claim
Stage: Appeal
Plea: Not guilty
Outcome: On the first day of the appeal hearing yesterday, Thomas Dooley Jnr's barrister, Thomas Creed SC, argued that his arrest and detention by gardaí was unlawful, while Patrick Dooley's senior counsel Michael O'Higgins contended that a "leading question" put to a witness about a sword or machete allegedly held by Patrick should not have been permitted into evidence at the men's trial. The youth, who was a juvenile when the attack on Thomas Dooley took place, was sentenced following the Supreme Court's landmark ruling which held that life sentences for a child convicted of murder should only be imposed in exceptional cases where the evidence showed the intentions and actions of the child were akin to those of an adult.