Trial of Waterford man accused of murder nears conclusion as jury is to begin deliberations

The jury in the trial of County Waterford man who is accused or murdering another man in Tallow two years ago is expected to begins its deliberations later this Thursday.

On Wednesday, the jury heard the accused “wanted to be like Conor McGregor” and that he viewed a young man leaving a pub “as prey” before delivering a “killer punch” that knocked him down to the ground where he hit his head.  

“This wasn’t a fight, it wasn’t an exchange, it was a pursuit down the street of a vulnerable young man,” said prosecuting counsel, Bernard Condon SC, at the Central Criminal Court.  

However, defence counsel, Brendan Grehan SC, said that Maurice Boland was guilty of unlawful killing, not murder, because there was no evidence of his intent to kill or cause serious injury to Cian Gallagher.  

Mr Boland, aged 37, of Bridgeview Close, Tallow, County Waterford has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of the 26-year-old at Barrack Street in the town on November 10, 2022.  
 
During the trial, the jury heard that the incident took place on Wednesday November 2, going into the early hours of November 3, with Mr Gallagher dying in hospital eight days later.  

The trial heard that Mr Gallagher had been drinking from around 7pm in Tallow, while Mr Boland had been drinking in Lismore from 7pm until about 10pm that evening. He then got a bus from Lismore to Tallow at about midnight. 

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It is the State's case that Mr Gallagher was walking down the road when he was "set upon" by the defendant.   

In his closing speech to the jury, Mr Condon said that the accused “wanted to do damage” and was not going to be finished until Mr Gallagher was put down and knocked out.

He said that this was precisely what the accused wanted, which was clear when Mr Boland talked to three young men who arrived on the scene after the punch and bragged about hitting Mr Gallagher “like Conor McGregor in the UFC”.  

Mr Condon said that the jury could look at the accused’s behaviour before, during and after the punch to see what he intended and desired. Referencing the evidence of assistant State pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster, who had told the jury that the cause of death was Mr Gallagher hitting the back of his head when he fell, Mr Condon said that “the cause of death isn’t the end of the story”, as Mr Gallagher did not just “spontaneously fall”.    

“While a person who is drunk might fall, you can see this wasn’t just a one-off. The accused is pursuing him down the street, and he is only stopped when he has knocked him out,” said Mr Condon, adding that the punch was part of a process by which the accused wanted to cause Mr Gallagher serious injury.  

Counsel reminded the jury of the evidence of witnesses in a pub earlier in the evening who said the accused was behaving aggressively, saying he was going to “beat the shit out of” a patron and “smash his face in”. He said that the accused was “an aggressive drunk” who had “inveigled his way" into the company of other patrons.  

“It might be suggested that he is some kind of a loveable drunk, but he’s an encumbrance on other people's enjoyment of their night,” said Mr Condon.  

Counsel said that the accused had wanted to fight somebody, but he did not square up to “a fit young man with four buddies beside him” in the pub, which suggested there was a cowardliness to him.  

“He wasn’t going to take on the five, fit young man; the walking wounded is what he goes for in the end,” said Mr Condon.  

Mr Condon said that CCTV footage showed the accused standing in the street waiting for someone to come along, before Mr Gallagher exited a pub, unsteady on his feet and maybe getting sick.  

“You see the attitude of Mr Boland as he sees the prey, he zeroed in, pursuing him down that street,” said Mr Condon, going on to say that the accused delivered “a haymaker, a very big punch” that put Mr Gallagher down, “and, God love him, he didn’t get up”.  

He reminded the jury that the accused told gardaí that Mr Gallagher had swung at him, so he hit him back, but counsel said that this was untrue.  

“We can see when he delivers the killer punch that it’s not in the aftermath of any punch swung by Mr Gallagher, who only put his hands up to get him to leave him alone,” said Mr Condon, going on to say that the accused “wanted to be like Conor McGregor”.    

“This wasn’t a fight, it wasn’t an exchange, it was a pursuit down the street of a vulnerable young man. He was bragging because he had done what he wanted to do,” said Mr Condon.  

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In his closing speech for the defence, Mr Grehan invited the jury to go to the point where the accused hit Mr Gallagher, causing him to fall, as he disagreed with Mr Condon’s description of the punch as “a haymaker”.  

“Look at that point in the video – does it appear particularly powerful? Freezeframe at that point – do you think you have witnessed a murder? I say it is unreasonable and illogical to suggest you have,” said Mr Grehan.  

“What happened is that as a result of that punch, he collapsed and banged his head off the ground and suffered a very bad brain injury from which he never recovered,” he said.  

In reference to “whatever bit of decency he had”, counsel said that Mr Boland did not just walk away after the punch but went back and tried to lift Mr Gallagher off the road onto the pathway.   

“His punch caused him to fall, but he did not knock him out or cause brain damage. That was caused by the fall,” said Mr Grehan, adding that the accused was guilty of unlawful killing, not murder, because there was no evidence of intent to kill or cause serious injury.  

In her charge to the jury, Ms Justice Eileen Creedon said that any evidence of misconduct by the accused earlier in the evening was of limited value, so the jury cannot use this as evidence of his guilt of murder.  

The judge said that every unlawful killing is manslaughter, but it shall not be murder unless the accused intends to kill or cause serious harm. She told the jury that if they decided that the accused did not intend to kill, they still must consider whether he intended to cause serious injury. If they conclude that he killed Mr Gallagher and intended to do so, then the verdict is guilty of murder.  

Ms Justice Creedon told the jury of seven men and five women that their verdict must be unanimous. The jury will now begin their deliberations later this Thursday.