Two brothers have failed to show "a single shred of remorse" for "savagely" assaulting a 55-year-old man who died 13 days after he was twice attacked, the victim's family has told the Central Criminal Court.
Gerry Mulvey today told the sentencing hearing of Ian, 34 and Daniel Connaghan, 43, that "not a day goes by" without a family member having to pass the spot where Michael 'Mick' Mulvey's life was taken.
The Connaghans, both of Ashington Rise, Navan Road, Cabra, Dublin 7, had denied the murder of Michael Mulvey, 55, during a 2019 attack on the Navan Road, close to the Phoenix Park.
Following a trial in July, the jury returned a unanimous verdict of not guilty of murder for both men but found Ian Connaghan guilty of manslaughter and Daniel Connaghan guilty of intentionally or recklessly causing serious harm to Mr Mulvey.
In Ian Connaghan's case, the jury was satisfied that his actions caused Mr Mulvey's death but were not satisfied that he had the requisite intent for murder.
At the sentence hearing, Detective Sergeant Maeve Ward gave evidence to Anne Rowland SC, for the State, that on 27 November 2019, Mr Mulvey passed away having been assaulted 13 days beforehand.
She said that the deceased was very slight in stature, less than 5' 3" in height and weighing less than ten stone.
She said that on 14 November, Mr Mulvey and his partner Pauline Matthews were coming back from shopping with Mr Mulvey driving, when Ian Connaghan stepped out onto the pedestrian crossing before the lights had gone green, causing Mr Mulvey to brake to avoid colliding with him.
Ms Matthews told the trial that Ian Connaghan came over shouting at Mr Mulvey, saying: "I’m going to wait for you, I'm going to burn your house down, I’m going to kill you."
Det Sgt Ward said that Ian Connaghan then walked over 1km to where Mr Mulvey lived.
A resident gave evidence that Ian Connaghan was shouting at Mr Mulvey in the middle of the road, before he started hitting him with "very quick blows into the face and anywhere else he could".
Mr Mulvey fell, and Ian Connaghan continued to strike him with "very hard blows". Det Sgt Ward said that Mr Mulvey did not try to defend himself at all.
The detective said that another resident witnessed the incident, and this resident said that Ian Connaghan delivered "powerful kicks" to Mr Mulvey’s stomach and a number of kicks to the head.
Det Sgt Ward said that a short time later, Daniel Connaghan picked up his brother Ian in a jeep and they saw Mr Mulvey standing in the middle of a roundabout near a local public house.
A witness said that the brothers "raced towards" Mr Mulvey and Daniel Connaghan jumped on him from behind, wrapped his arms around his neck, pulled him to the ground, and punched him repeatedly to the face.
The witness described these as "very forceful punches and very aggressive" and said that Mr Mulvey offered no resistance.
At the same time, Ian Connaghan was punching Mr Mulvey, before he started to deliver "forceful kicks" to the victim’s stomach and groin area.
Det Sgt Ward said the witness described it as a very violent assault.
The detective said that another witness to the attack said he saw "two men throwing an awful lot of punches at an older man" and the older man was bleeding from the mouth.
The witness also said that Mr Mulvey got "a ferocious punch" to the side of the face as he was walking away.
Det Sgt Ward said that Mr Mulvey sustained bruising and injuries to his face, including two fractures to the eye socket and fractures of his ribs.
The detective said that the fractures of the ribs caused a mixture of air and blood in the victim’s chest cavity, and he was kept in hospital for three days.
Over the following days, Mr Mulvey had breathing difficulties, and his face was coloured grey.
He sadly passed away in the early hours of 27 November, and a post-mortem revealed that the mixture of air and blood in his chest had increased, with 800ml of liquid blood found.
The court heard that his death was due to hemopneumothorax, but heart disease and lung disease were contributing factors.
During the trial, the jury heard that Ian Connaghan sent a message to a WhatsApp group, saying that he was "after opening Mulvey’s face up", while Daniel Connaghan sent a message to another brother saying that he and Ian had left Mr Mulvey "in an awful state".
Ms Rowland said that the DPP had directed that the offence lay at the high end of the scale due to the "viciousness by both men".
She said that probation reports indicated that the brothers had tried to minimise their roles, which reinforced "a complete lack of remorse".
Gerry Mulvey, the brother of the deceased, read out a victim impact statement on behalf of the family.
He said that just days after his brother’s 55th birthday, Michael Mulvey was "savagely assaulted" by the two men.
"To this day, they have not shown a single shred of remorse," he said.
He told the court that his brother was a hardworking man who had been able to buy his own house at the age of 27.
"They say there is something special about a seventh son, and that was true of Mick," he said, going on to say: "Not a day passes without one of us having to pass the spot where his life was taken."
"Despite the four years that have passed, Mick still lives in our hearts and always will," said Mr Mulvey, becoming emotional as he added that during the trial, it became obvious that his brother was just as much on trial as the two accused men.
"He wasn’t in court to defend himself. It is our fervent hope that the court will consider the devastating consequences of this crime on our family," he said.
The partner of the deceased, Pauline Matthews gave a victim impact statement, in which she said that she missed Michael as a loving partner with whom she did everything.
"I miss him beside me every night," she said, telling the court that she is now on medication to deal with her fear and anxiety.
Det Sgt Ward said that Ian Connaghan had five previous convictions, including drug possession and road traffic matters, while Daniel Connaghan had previous for road traffic offences.
Defence counsel for Ian Connaghan, Garnet Orange SC, said that his client had written a letter of apology, in which he said he was "truly and deeply remorseful".
"Not a day has gone by that I haven't thought about this altercation. I cannot change what happened, if I could, I would," Mr Orange told the court Ian Connaghan had said.
Counsel for Daniel Connaghan, Garret Baker SC said that his client had expressed shock at Mr Mulvey’s death and "wishes he had stayed at home on the evening".
The matter was put back to 4 December for sentencing, with Mr Justice Paul Burns remanding both men in custody to that date.
