Courts / Cork / Report

Evidence points to 'inescapable conclusion' of 1981 murder accused's guilt, prosecution say

Date
2023-08-01

Stage
Trial

Primary locality
Cork

County
Cork

Summary

At the Central Criminal Court, prosecutors have submitted that forensic evidence in a cold case murder trial points inescapably to the guilt of the accused. Senior counsel Brendan Grehan closed the State's case against Noel Long, aged 74, of Maulbawn, Passage West, County Cork, who has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Nora Sheehan between 6 and 12 June 1981. Ms Sheehan's body was discovered at Shippool Woods, Cork, six days after she went missing. Mr Grehan told the jury that fibres from the victim's clothing and paint fragments matched those from the accused's Opel Kadett motor vehicle. A DNA profile recovered from semen found on the deceased matched that from a beanie hat belonging to Mr Long, with odds of one in 23,000 against it being unrelated. Defence counsel Michael Delaney SC argued the 42-year delay was unprecedented and that critical exhibits had been lost, preventing independent verification of the prosecution's forensic findings. The jury's verdict is now pending.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Evidence points to 'inescapable conclusion' of 1981 murder accused's guilt, prosecution say. Charges or matters: murdering 54-year-old Nora Sheehan between June 6 and June 12, 1981 at an unknown place within the State. Procedural stage: trial

When:

June 6 Hearing Or Sentence
June 12, 1981 Hearing Or Sentence
June 12 Other
June 6, 1981 Other
December 2008 Hearing Or Sentence
2023-08-01 Publication

Why: Not surprisingly, he said, former State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy had offered a view in her evidence that because she was unclothed and there was an injury to her vagina it was possible she was sexually assaulted in those circumstances. CNI source report