Boy A denied manslaughter option in murder trial

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Mr Justice Paul McDermott refused an application to give the jury a manslaughter option in Boy A’s murder trial. The proceedings were reported on 18 June 2019.

The application followed the judge’s jury charge, after jurors had begun deliberating.

Senior counsel Patrick Gageby argued that, if jurors found Boy A was in the abandoned house but did not intend to kill Ana Kriégel or cause her serious injury, they would have no option but to acquit him unless they could consider manslaughter.

Prosecuting counsel Brendan Grehan opposed the request, arguing that it lacked an adequate evidential basis and had not been raised at the appropriate time.

The judge said the proposed alternative would invite speculation outside the reality of the evidence. He refused to recharge the jury so it could consider manslaughter as an alternative verdict.