Courts / Dublin / Report

55-day-long Peter Butterly murder trial collapses

Summary

The 55‑day Special Criminal Court trial of Dean Evans (24), Edward McGrath (33) and Sharif Kelly (44) for the murder of 35‑year‑old Peter Butterly collapsed after a failure in evidence disclosure. Judge Deirdre Murphy ruled the court must discharge itself as a jury and order a retrial. The collapse followed the revelation that privileged material from witness David Cullen's 2013 statement had been inadequately disclosed. Cullen, who had testified that he was part of the murder plan and had turned State's witness, had been given a partially redacted statement to the defence, breaching cross‑examination rights. The judge cited the unexplained failure of disclosure as undermining the integrity of the process, leading to the decision to remand Evans and McGrath in custody and Kelly on bail pending a new trial. The original case involved the shooting of Butterly in the car park of the Huntsman Inn, Gormanston, on 6 March 2013. Sharif Kelly pleaded not guilty. Dean Evans pleaded not guilty. Edward McGrath pleaded not guilty.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: 55-day-long Peter Butterly murder trial collapses. Charges or matters: murdering the 35-year-old father of two; firearm offences on the same occasion. Procedural stage: trial

When:

• March 6, 2013 Adjournment
• July 2013 Hearing Or Sentence
• 2015-01-23 Publication

Why: The information came to light, the court heard, because Mr McGrath's barrister, Bernard Condon SC, was briefed in another case in which the document was disclosed without redactions. Court evidence reported by CNI

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Trial Violent Crime

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Read the original CNI report