A round-up of today’s other news stories in brief
Man on trial for stabbing death outside pub
An 18-year-old Dublin man who stabbed another man to death outside a pub has gone on trial for murder at the Central Criminal Court.
The accused, who was 17 at the time, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Michael Murphy (31), but admits he stabbed him during a fight outside the Budabar at Blanchardstown town centre on Halloween night 2004.
The court heard Mr Murphy died as a result of shock due to blood loss after he was stabbed in the chest.
He also received multiple stab wounds to his head, neck, chest and abdomen and was pronounced dead early on November 1st at the James Connolly Memorial Hospital.
Denis Vaughan Buckley SC, prosecuting, told the jury that the issue in this case was whether the stabbing amounted to murder or not.
The trial continues before Mr Justice Eamon de Valera.
Funeral today of Down fisherman
The funeral takes place this morning of the fisherman lost off the Co Down coast last week.
Donal Gibson (22), Ardfern Park, Downpatrick, will be buried after Requiem Mass in the town today.
He died when his vessel, the Greenhill, hit rocks just north of Ardglass in heavy seas and strong winds on Thursday.
Conor Bogues, from Ballynahinch, is still missing.
Woman jailed for importing drugs
A woman has been sentenced to five years by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for importing cocaine valued at €136,000.
Pamela Moulds (35), Wainsfort Avenue, Terenure, pleaded guilty to possessing nearly 2kg of cocaine for sale or supply at Dublin airport in October 2004.
Judge Katherine Delahunt suspended the final year of the sentence and said that while Moulds was not actively engaged in criminal activity, "without people like you the criminal network would have much greater difficulty".
Det Garda William Armstrong told Vincent Heneghan BL, prosecuting, that a Customs official stopped Moulds as she passed through the green channel at Dublin airport.
She said she had arrived from England but her luggage tags indicated she had travelled from Malaga. A search of her suitcase revealed three packages containing the cocaine.
Boots fined under new waste act
Boots Retail (Ireland) Ltd has pleaded guilty in Wexford District Court to charges brought by the Environmental Protection Agency in relation to offences under the new Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations.
In the first case taken under the regulations in the EU, Boots admitted two technical breaches relating to its failure to notify customers that prices for electrical goods included a contribution to a producer recycling fund for WEEE.
Fines of €1,200 were imposed and costs of €6,865 were awarded to the EPA.
Medical student places may double
The Cabinet will today be asked to approve plans to double the number of training places provided for those those who want to study medicine. The plan is to double the number of training places in medical schools for Irish and non-EU students to more than 700 on a phased basis.
The numbers of places for these students has been capped at 308. The plans to increase training places are based on proposals from an expert group chaired by Prof Patrick Fottrell, a former NUI Galway president.
There will also be a new graduate entry programme, running alongside the existing undergraduate system. When the health estimates were announced last November, €9 million was set aside for increasing by 70 the number of places in medical schools this year.