This article is from page 11 of the 2007-12-11 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 11 JPG
DETAILS of the horrific injuries sustained by Ennistymon schoolgirl Marguerite O’Dwyer were recalled at the inquest into her death yester- Cr MA
The 17-year-old was killed by her brother Patrick (now 22) in the fam- ily home at Shrohill, Ennistymon, on November 29, 2004.
He was found guilty by a jury of manslaughter, by reason of dimin- ished responsibility, at the end of a six-day trial in the Central Criminal Court in April and was later jailed for Six years.
His defence had claimed that he suffered from a mental disorder, when he killed his sister, a Leaving Certificate student.
State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy told the inquest into Ms O’Dwyer’s death yesterday that she had been “the victim of a violent assault” and had sustained “at least 90 stab wounds” and “at least six blows to the head.”
“This type of injury would cause rapid death and was irrecoverable,” she said, adding that many of the stab wounds appeared to have been “inflicted after death.”
She may have been knocked uncon- scious by the first blow,” she said.
She said that the young woman had sustained 64 stab wounds to the trunk, many of which were deep and which had penetrated organs. Dr Cassidy carried out the post mortem into the death on December 1, 2004.
“She had been healthy prior to this,” she said.
‘The cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head, as a contributory cause stab wounds to the body,” she HKG
Coroner Isobel O’Dea told the jury that the most appropriate verdict is “in accordance with the findings of the Central Criminal Court” and the jury agreed with this.
Ms O’Dea expressed her sympathy with Marguerite’s parents Paddy and Claire, who attended the inquest. She said it was “a very tragic and unfor-
tunate occurrence.”
Inspector Michael Gallagher also sympathized with the O’Dwyers “on the tragic loss of their beautiful daughter”.
Earlier, Marguerite’s employer at Enzo’s chipshop in Lahinch, Olivia Gosseau, said the young girl had worked in the fast food outlet part- time for a number of months while she attended school. She worked six days a week during the summer holi- days.
She said that Marguerite had called to the chipshop with her friend Laura Hartigan on the evening of Saturday, November 27, 2004.
She said Laura looked for that night off so that she could attend a party at Marguerite’s house.
She said that Marguerite worked between 2pm and 6.30pm the fol- lowing day, Sunday, November 28.
Marguerite told her she had tidied up the house after a party the night before.
“She said Patrick had got drunk the night before. He hurt himself,’ re- called Ms Gosseau in her statement.
Marguerite told her employer that Patrick was at home asleep, when she went to work that Sunday after- noon.
“She was in great form. She left at 6.30pm on foot. It was the last time I saw her,” she recalled.
Garda Pat Brennan said he was driving the patrol car at 2.45pm on November 30, 2004, when he re- ceived a call to go to Ennistymon Garda Station.
When he and his colleague, Garda Alan Keane, arrived at the station, Patrick O’Dwyer was sitting in the public office.
“Patrick O’Dwyer had come into the station and informed Garda Gantley he had killed his sister,’ said Gda Brennan.
O’Dwyer handed the keys of the house to the garda and said, “She is in the sitting room.”
The two gardai went to the house and found Marguerite’s body in the sitting room.
‘Her skull appeared to be smashed open to the right-hand side. There was a lot of blood. A blanket covered the body,” he recalled in his deposi- tion to the inquest.
Marguerite was pronounced dead by a doctor at 4.50pm and her body was identified by her uncle, John Ryan.