The Court of Appeal has upheld Alexsander Nadwodny's murder conviction for the fatal stabbing of Kieran Cunningham in Galway city in June 2009.
Nadwodny had pleaded not guilty at his Central Criminal Court trial. He was unanimously convicted of murder on 27 January 2011 and sentenced to life imprisonment. His sole ground of appeal was that the jury's verdict was perverse and contrary to the evidence.
The prosecution case concerned events in the early hours of 3 June 2009 after Mr Cunningham left Karma Nightclub. CCTV showed Nadwodny crossing the road towards him over a distance of about 68 feet before stabbing him three times. Mr Cunningham was taken to Galway University Hospital, where he died.
Nadwodny accepted both in Garda interviews and in his trial evidence that he had stabbed Mr Cunningham. It was also accepted that the killing was unlawful. The central issue for the jury was his state of mind: whether the prosecution had proved beyond reasonable doubt that he intended to kill Mr Cunningham or cause him serious harm.
Nadwodny's case was that he had consumed a substantial quantity of alcohol before the stabbing and was so intoxicated that his control over his actions was severely impaired. He also challenged the reliability of his companion, Ms Zlotnik, and claimed she had prompted him to confront Mr Cunningham.
The Court of Appeal held that the jury had heard extensive evidence, including eyewitness accounts, Nadwodny's own testimony and CCTV footage of the attack. The jury had also been made aware that he was intoxicated.
Mr Justice Mahon said an appellate court may set aside a jury verdict as perverse only in exceptional circumstances. It cannot simply substitute its own view of the evidence for that of the jury.
The court was satisfied that the murder verdict was open to the jury on the evidence. The appeal was dismissed.