A law professor, Diarmuid Phelan, shot an unarmed trespasser in the back of the head during an incident on his farm in Co Dublin, a jury at the Central Criminal Court has been told.
Róisín Lacey SC said two shots were fired into the air by Mr Phelan and a third penetrated the body of Keith Conlon during the incident on February 22nd, 2022.
The prosecution case is that, when the third shot was fired, the deceased was shot in the back of the head as he had turned away from Mr Phelan and, in the circumstances, he had the requisite intent for murder, counsel said.
Mr Phelan told gardaí when interviewed the same day he believed, if he had not reacted immediately, “he would have got me”, Ms Lacey said. He had told gardaí he was “terrified”, “stressed” and “scared shitless”, she said.
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The defence case, as the prosecution understood it, was that Mr Phelan was entitled to discharge his firearm, a Smith & Wesson revolver, as he did; it constituted a legitimate act of self-defence and was not done with intent to penetrate the body of Mr Conlon.
The defence case was penetration was an unintended result due to factors including inaccuracy of the weapon, repeated firing, its light weight and heavy trigger pull, a combination of fear and stress, and of movement of the deceased.
Ms Lacey was opening the prosecution case against Mr Phelan, who has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Mr Conlon (36) at Hazelgrove Farm, Kiltalown Lane, Tallaght, Co Dublin, on February 24th, 2022. Mr Conlon was critically injured two days earlier and pronounced dead on February 24th, the court was told.
Aged 54, with an address in south Dublin and formerly with an address at Hazelgrove Farm, Kiltalown Lane, the jury has heard Mr Phelan is a senior counsel and law professor at Trinity College Dublin.
Members of Mr Conlon’s family were in the packed court on Wednesday afternoon when the trial opened before Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford and a jury of nine men and three women. Members of Mr Phelan’s family were also present.
During her opening, Ms Lacey stressed what she was saying was not evidence and the jury would have to decide the case on the evidence heard.
Mr Conlon and two other men were engaged in fox bolting, using a dog to hunt down badgers and foxes, on the farm in Tallaght on February 22nd, 2022.
Mr Phelan was in another part of the farm working with four farmhands, foreign nationals known as Woofers working in return for board and lodging, she said.
They earlier ignored a dog barking but, about 1pm, Mr Phelan, concerned about lambing ewes, went with a farmhand, Julian Rodeau, towards the area of the barking.
The prosecution would say, without issuing any warning, Mr Phelan shot a dog with a rifle. The dog, named Vim, belonged to another of the trespassers, Callum Coleman, and was tied to a tree, she said.
Counsel said Mr Phelan retreated back towards where he had come from, followed by the trespassers, and there were heated exchanges and shouting about the dog being shot.
Mr Phelan took out his phone and said he would call gardaí and was shouting at Mr Conlon and Mr Coleman to go, keep their distance and get back, she said.
As they approached, Mr Phelan walked towards them and took out a revolver from a pocket of his jacket, she said.
Neither Mr Coleman nor Mr Conlon had any weapon and the jury would hear from witnesses two shots were fired into the air and the third connected with Mr Conlon.
The prosecution will say Mr Conlon had turned away to leave and he was shot in the back of the head, counsel said. He was critically injured and died two days later in hospital.
Gardaí were called and Mr Phelan was arrested at the scene at 1.45pm and interviewed at Tallaght Garda station in the presence of his solicitor. He told gardaí he had been subject to previous incidents on his lands, there had been trespassers and he had put up fences which were broken down. He said, on February 22nd 2022, he was working with the farmhands and went down with one when he heard the dog barking, called out but there was no reply.
He told gardaí he saw a dog partially obscured in a bush, it was going towards sheep and he shot it. He said three men then “exploded” from the bushes, shouting and roaring and talking about getting him.
He told gardaí he perceived those as threats and was shaking as he was clambered up the bank and got one of the farm workers to call the gardaí.
He told gardaí he was alerted to “the Travellers” coming towards him and the farmhands. Neither of the two men were Travellers, Ms Lacey said.
Mr Phelan had said he told the men he had called gardaí but they kept coming and he believed they were coming to fulfil the “threats” he had said they had made.
He told gardaí he reached for the revolver and shot in the air and was “stunned” when Mr Conlon went down. He said he had a mix of ammunition in the revolver, bullets and birdshot, and had it for vermin control.
He had told gardaí he believed, if he had not reacted immediately, “he would have got me” and was “terrified”, “stressed” and “scared shitless”. He told gardaí he was not angry and had not lost his temper.
Counsel said the jury would hear evidence of three 999 calls made to the emergency services. The first responders came very quickly and gardaí met Mr Phelan on the driveway and he brought them to where Mr Conlon was.
Mr Conlon was treated by Mr Phelan with some kind of blood clotting powder, she said.
Mr Phelan told gardaí he had shot Mr Conlon and when asked where the gun was, he took it from his pocket and threw it on the ground, she said.
The trial continues on Thursday.
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