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A Murder in the Family: Patricia O'Connor Trial Summary

Date
2020-12-23

Stage
Trial

Primary locality
Rathfarnham

County
Dublin

Summary

The trial of Kieran Greene, aged 61, centred on the murder of his partner's mother, Patricia O'Connor, who was found dead in a shallow grave in Wexford. Greene admitted to a physical altercation in the house, claiming he struck her with a hurley and she struck him back. He said she became unresponsive, that he carried her upstairs, placed her in the boot of a Toyota Corolla, drove to Wexford, dug a shallow grave, buried her, and later dismembered her body with a hacksaw. Greene told Gardaí he had acted alone, that he had no accomplices, and that he had handed himself in because he could not live with the guilt. He also claimed the murder was self‑defence. The prosecution presented CCTV footage, forensic evidence of hair and body parts, and statements from family members to show Greene's involvement. The jury heard that Greene's December interview was unreliable and that he had changed his account.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: A Murder in the Family: Patricia O'Connor Trial Summary. Procedural stage: trial

When:

May 30 Hearing Or Sentence
May 29 Incident
June 1 Other
June 10 Hearing Or Sentence
June 12 Incident
June 13 Other
September 2017 Incident
June 2017 Other
June 9 Hearing Or Sentence
December 12, 2017 Adjournment
January 2, 2018 Other
June 1, 2017 Hearing Or Sentence
October 2018 Hearing Or Sentence
Christmas Incident
2020-12-23 Publication

Why: It was the State's case that, in order to cover up the murder, Stephanie O'Connor dressed up as her grandmother as "a ruse" to pretend she had stormed out of the house on the night of May 29. CNI source report