Three men have been found guilty of killing a man, a father to seven, during a funeral in County Kerry two years prior. Deliberation is expected to continue on Friday for three additional accused individuals.
In the space of just over eight hours, the jury — comprising 10 men and two women — charged Thomas Dooley Sr. (43), Thomas Dooley Jr (21), and an unnamed minor with the assassination of Thomas Dooley at Tralee’s Rath Cemetery on the 5th of October, 2022.
Ms. Justice Mary Ellen Ring conveyed her gratitude to the jurors for their work to this point at the Central Criminal Court in Cork, requesting that they recommence their discussions on Friday regarding the remaining accused: Patrick Dooley (39), Danny Dooley (42), and Michael Dooley (29). All six implicated in the crime refuted any claims of their culpability in the murder.
In addition, Thomas Dooley Jr. faced allegations of inflicting harm on Siobhán Dooley, Thomas Dooley’s widow, at the same Rath Cemetery, to which he also entered a plea of not guilty. However, the jury found him guilty. Ms. Dooley required medical intervention for a wound sustained during the incident, which necessitated 45 stitches and 30 staples and stretched from her right shoulder to her armpit.
State prosecutors pointed out that Mr. Dooley (43) lost his life in a fierce, targeted attack with bladed weapons while attending a funeral in Tralee, referring to the damage sustained as brutal. It was exposed during the trial that the father of seven suffered a quartet of stabbings at the cemetery in Kerry following a conflict. One of these injuries sliced through the femoral artery in his leg, causing a lethal amount of blood loss.
Throughout the 35-day-long trial, the jurors were informed that Patrick Dooley was a sibling of the deceased, whereas Thomas Dooley Snr, Daniel Dooley, and Michael Dooley were first cousins. Thomas Dooley Jr. was Thomas Dooley Snr’s son and co-accused.
Patrick Dooley lived in Arbutus Grove, Killarney, while Daniel Dooley resided in Carraigin, Connolly Park, Tralee. The Cork-based Halting Site in Carrigrohane Road was the home to Thomas Dooley Snr, Thomas Dooley Jr, and Michael Dooley.
Deliberations will continue as the trial resumes on Friday.