Courts / Kildare / Report

Psychiatrist "man enough" to say he made a mistake, defence tell murder trial jury

Summary

Yusif Ali Abdi, 46, is on trial at the Central Criminal Court for the murder of his 20-month-old son, Nathan Baraka Andrew Ali, at The Elms, College Road, Clane, Co Kildare, on April 17, 2001. Abdi pleaded not guilty to the charge. The matter is currently at the retrial stage following an appeal in which the Court of Appeal quashed his 2003 murder conviction, citing a newly discovered diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia in 2013. During closing submissions, defence counsel Barry White SC stated that Abdi had been admitted to the Central Mental Hospital on three separate occasions during his detention. White argued that all four expert psychiatrists now agree Abdi was suffering from schizophrenia at the time of the killing, rendering him legally insane. Prosecution counsel Seamus Clarke SC contended that the proper verdict is not guilty by reason of insanity. The jury is currently deliberating, with the judge continuing to charge them. No final verdict or sentence has been recorded in this report.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Psychiatrist "man enough" to say he made a mistake, defence tell murder trial jury. Charges or matters: murdering 20-month-old Nathan Baraka Andrew Ali at The Elms, College Road, Clane, Co Kildare on April 17, 2001. Procedural stage: appeal. Findings: Found guilty

When:

• April 17, 2001 Hearing Or Sentence
• August 1999 Hearing Or Sentence
• April 2001 Other
• 2019-12-13 Publication

Why: Counsel explained that lawyers for Mr Abdi appealed the case to the Court of Appeal earlier this year on the basis that there was a newly discovered fact, namely that Mr Abdi had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2013 and a retrial was ordered. CNI source report

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal Violent Crime

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Read the original CNI report