Patrick Murphy: Man accused of stabbing Joseph Brosnan to death in Tralee tells gardaí he is ‘peaceful’

Director of Public Prosecutions Senior Solicitor Patrick Gageby told the jury in his opening statement that the defendant had admitted to the unlawful killing of Joseph Brosnan.

What the 12 jurors will have to look at in this case, the lawyer said, is the defendant’s intent at the time he committed the act that caused Mr. Brosnan’s death.

Patrick Murphy (52), of no fixed abode, pleaded not guilty to murder but pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Mr Brosnan at Tralee Abbey Court on 22 May 2022.

Opening the case for the prosecution on Tuesday, Mr Gageby said the events in question took place in Tralee at around 6.30pm on the date in question.

The dead man, Joseph Brosnan, lived in a flat in Abbey Court, Tralee.

He had previously worked at a direct supply center on the outskirts of the city, where he met and befriended a Polish national named Kamil Lisowski.

The lawyer said Mr. Brosnan helped Mr. Lisowski get settled and move into the apartment and they became good friends.

In the years before Mr. Brosnan’s death, it was common for the two men to meet, chat and drink together.

Mr Gageby said Mr Brosnan had not worked for about five years before 2022 because he had health problems, including high blood pressure, and was on disability benefits at the time.

On the date in question, Mr Lisowski finished his work at quarter to eight in the morning and called his friend Mr Brosnan.

Mr Gageby said there was drinking and the pair sat together watching television.

A man called Shane Fitzgerald lived in the flat opposite Mr Brosnan’s home, he told the jury. Mr Fitzgerald lived there with a young woman called Danielle O’Sullivan, he said, adding that Mrs O’Sullivan was the daughter of the defendant Patrick Murphy.

At around 3pm Mr Murphy called to Mr Brosnan’s house along with Shane Fitzgerald. The barrister told the jury that further drinking at the house resulted in some insults being exchanged between Mr Lisowski and Mr Murphy.

“It all went down, but not before Mr. Lisowski slapped Mr. Murphy in the face,” Mr. Gageby said.

Things calmed down and people shook hands but the issue “reignited” and Patrick Murphy was asked to leave. The lawyer said he was “a little upset or angry” when he left.

The lawyer said that at a quarter to seven that evening, Patrick Murphy returned and apologized. He said the jury would hear that Mr Murphy was “violently pushed out” and fell to the ground outside.

A short time later Mr Brosnan opened the door again for Mr Murphy and told the defendant to leave.

The barrister said Mr Murphy “appeared to be armed with a fairly large kitchen knife and used it to stab Mr Brosnan”.

The lawyer stated that the deceased was stabbed once in the hand, in a non-serious manner, and once in the back, and that this was not life-threatening.

Mr Gageby said the second stab wound to Mr Brosnan’s back was fatal because it penetrated the pericardial sac around the deceased’s heart, causing massive bleeding and causing death to occur “fairly quickly”.

The lawyer said Mr Brosnan was “aware he was seriously injured and told Mr Lisowski: ‘I’m dying’”.

“The ambulance and gardaí were called but sadly he (Mr Brosnan) died lying on the sofa in his flat,” Mr Gageby said.

Mr Gageby said the prosecution case would be “a clear intention to kill or cause serious injury”.

“Mr Brosnan had the right to refuse entry and if that meant pushing him (Mr Murphy) out then so be it,” he said.

Mr Gageby said the prosecution argued there was no reason for the defendant to bring a knife into the flat.

He told the jury they would hear from a number of security officers, including Garda James Fairbrother, who spoke to Mr Murphy at the scene. He said a conversation took place between the pair and the jury would hear evidence that the defendant told gardai “he was peaceful and did not know who stabbed the deceased”.

Counsel said Mr Murphy was arrested and during the interview he admitted that the deceased had probably suffered a seizure, then brought a knife to the scene and stabbed Mr Brosnan.

Mr Gageby said the whole context of the case depended on whether the prosecution could persuade the jury that the defendant intended to kill or seriously injure Mr Brosnan when he stabbed him.

The trial continues today (Wednesday) before Mr Justice Paul Burns and a jury of eight men and four women.