Man to be sentenced for killing ‘intruder’ suffers punishment attack in prison, court hears

Judge to pass sentence in March after jury previously delivered unanimous guilty verdict of manslaughter A man who killed an “intruder” outside his home is now on 23-hour lock-up for his own protection, after an alleged “punishment” attack in jail left him with facial wounds requiring two dozen stitches, his barrister has said.Patrick Murphy (37) admitted stabbing 20-year-old Jordan Ronan, causing his death on July 26th, 2024, but maintained he was defending his family and property.The court had heard that Murphy’s dogs alerted him to Ronan’s presence in his front driveway after 3am, with the deceased observed on CCTV getting in and out of the defendant’s newly bought van. Murphy then rushed barefoot out of his home into the street armed with a kitchen knife – telling gardaí in a statement he stabbed the person in the front seat of his partner’s car and said: “Come on, get the f**k out of here.”READ MORENew Garda search connected to disappearances of Jo Jo Dullard and Deirdre Jacob welcomedThe privileged life and tragic death of an 11-year-old Tipperary girl over 100 years ago‘Cop on’: Andy Farrell hits out at ‘keyboard warriors’ over criticism of Prendergast and CrowleyHarris sketches out incentivised savings scheme to help ‘middle classes’In December, a jury at the Central Criminal Court found Murphy, of Drumcairn Parade, Tallaght, not guilty of murder, but returned a unanimous guilty verdict of manslaughter, in line with his plea before the trial commenced.Ronan’s partner, Lauren Geraghty, said in a victim-impact statement on Monday that she was looking forward to navigating parenthood with “the love of my life” when he was killed. She was six weeks pregnant with their first child at the time of the killing, the court was told.“While other children get to see their daddies, she’s left seeing a headstone. I’m not just mourning the loss of my partner; I’m mourning the loss of our future together,” Geraghty said.Sabrina Ronan, the deceased’s mother, thanked two people who gave first aid to her son. “I get a small sense of comfort knowing he wasn’t left to die alone and that he was surrounded with love and compassion in his final moments,” she said.At Monday’s hearing, Patricia McLaughlin SC, prosecuting, said a pathologist measured a single knife wound 18cm deep piercing the joint between Mr Ronan’s rib cage and breastbone going “almost all the way into the body”.The knife penetrated his lung and heart before terminating in his liver – the stab wound to the heart causing cardiac arrest “within minutes”, counsel said.Two pairs of pliers, some cannabis and a Revolut card in Patrick Murphy’s name found with the deceased were handed to gardaí by paramedics.Investigating gardaí who called to Murphy’s home that night were told he was “in bed” when they knocked and asked to speak to him.Det Garda Stephen Neylon confirmed to McLaughlin it was observed that Murphy was “nervous”, “appeared to have taken a shower”, and made “no mention of any interaction” with the deceased.After a neighbour showed officers CCTV showing “a person who fitted the description of Patrick Murphy”, gardaí arrested him for murder, the court was told. Murphy’s barrister, Ronan Kennedy SC, argued his client ought to be sentenced on the basis of “self-defence of property and family”, as that had been the primary argument advanced by his client.“It’s highly significant that in the early hours of the morning, Mr Murphy did not go looking for trouble. Rather, it came to his door. The fact is, his property was interfered with in the dead of night,” Kennedy said.While in custody, his client was “subjected to a vicious assault” and was told by his assailant it was “punishment” for the offence for which he was on trial, counsel said.“That’s not to cast any aspersions,” Mr Kennedy said. McLaughlin said she was happy Mr Kennedy had “clarified” that “no aspersions were being cast” in relation to any “retaliation in prison”.“I absolutely want to be unequivocal,” said Kennedy. “I am not casting any aspersions whatsoever. It’s clear the Ronan-Packenham family are a loving, caring family.”The judge said he would pass sentence on March 16th.