Appeal lawyer accuses DPP of "ambushing" murder accused and "offering" manslaughter pleas

An appeal against a murder conviction has been dismissed by the Court of Appeal following claims that prosecutors engaged in improper conduct during trial proceedings. Darren Wynne was convicted in July 2014 of murdering Jamie Lindsay at Coney Green, Athy, County Kildare on 6 April 2013, and received a mandatory life sentence. Two co-accused, Quentin Monaghan and James Seery, pleaded guilty to manslaughter during the trial and received custodial sentences of eight and seven years respectively, with portions suspended. Wynne's appeal centred on allegations that the timing of his co-accuseds' guilty pleas to manslaughter constituted prosecutorial misconduct. His counsel argued that the pleas were entered after gardaí interview memos had been admitted as evidence, thereby prejudicing Wynne's defence and creating an unfair trial environment. The defence contended that the jury should have been discharged and a retrial ordered as a result of this alleged ambush tactic. Wynne had originally pleaded not guilty to murder and raised provocation as a defence at trial, though a guilty plea to manslaughter was rejected by the Director of Public Prosecutions. The prosecution disputed the misconduct claims, submitting that evidence against Wynne was substantial and his provocation defence was weak. Mr Justice George Birmingham, sitting with two colleagues on the three-judge appeal panel, rejected the allegations as an unsupported assertion. The court found no evidence of improper conduct by prosecutors during the proceedings. The appeal was dismissed, and Wynne's conviction and life sentence were upheld. The shooting involved a sawn-off shotgun discharged at close range, and Wynne was also convicted of possessing the firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life.