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Jury hears of 'heartbreaking' case of mentally ill woman accused of murdering elderly mother who 'tirelessly supported her'

Summary

The Central Criminal Court heard psychiatric evidence in the trial of Moire Bergin, 47, who is accused of murdering her 76-year-old mother, Mary Bergin, in Dublin 1 on April 13, 2022. Ms Bergin pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Both prosecution and defence psychiatrists, Dr Paul O'Connell and Dr Stephen Monks, testified that the accused met the criteria for this special verdict. They agreed she suffered from bipolar affective disorder with psychotic symptoms, including religious delusions, and did not know the nature and quality of the act, could not appreciate it was morally wrong, or refrain from it. The court noted her history of 16 detentions under the Mental Health Act between 2005 and 2022. Prosecution counsel James Dwyer SC and defence counsel Fiona Murphy SC both submitted that the appropriate verdict was not guilty by reason of insanity. Justice Paul McDermott charged the jury, describing the case as tragic but instructing them to rely solely on the evidence. The jury was sent out to deliberate and the matter was adjourned to return tomorrow for a verdict.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Jury hears of 'heartbreaking' case of mentally ill woman accused of murdering elderly mother who 'tirelessly supported her'. Charges or matters: murdering her mother over two years ago; the murder of her mother. Procedural stage: finding. Findings: Not guilty by reason of insanity

When:

• March 6, 2021 Incident
• April 8, 2022 Incident
• April 13, 2022 Other
• May 29 Other
• December 2005 Other
• April 2022 Incident
• 2005 and 2022 Other
• 2024-07-02 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Finding

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Read the original CNI report