Woman accused of murdering husband had schizoaffective disorder, court hears

on 06/03/2013 18:44:14

A woman accused of murdering her husband by stabbing him to death had a background of schizoaffective disorder, the Central Criminal Court has heard.

Tanya Doyle (aged 40) of Pairc Gleann Trasna, Aylesbury, Tallaght has pleaded not guilty to murdering Paul Byrne (aged 48) at that address on September 4, 2009.

Defence Counsel Mr Brendan Grehan SC told the jury at the start of the trial that it was admitted his client alone killed Mr Byrne.

Mr Grehan told them the issue in the trial would be Ms Doyle's mental state at the time she carried out the killing.

The prosecution has now closed its case and the defence has begun calling medical witnesses, which Mr Grehan told the jury was to give some insight into the accused's mental health.

Consultant psychiatrist Professor Patricia Casey told Mr Grehan that Ms Doyle presented at the Mater Hospital on September 1, 2009 alleging she had been assaulted the previous Thursday.

Prof. Casey read medical notes to the court from her registrar Dr Kershee Naidoo saying Ms Doyle reported she had enemies in Dublin and was asking for blood tests, an eye check and a smear check.

Ms Doyle said she was interviewed for a newspaper and the article referred to her as a "high-class madame".

She said the "Daily Star" newspaper had described her as a high-class hooker on March 30 or 31 of that year.

She said she left Dublin when her name appeared in the newspaper and went to Portugal and Africa before going to visit a friend in Belfast but had to return because she ran out of money.

Ms Doyle said she was going through a separation at the time from her husband whom she married in 2001.

She was described as "manic with psychosis" and Prof. Casey told the jury when someone is manic they are overactive and have beliefs that are untrue and unshakeable.

A toxicology screening of Ms Doyle tested positive for Angel Dust, which was sold in head shops in Dublin at that time, Prof. Casey told the court.

The court was also told she was on anti-psychotic and anti-depressant medication but said he had not been taking one of the drugs for three weeks because she could not afford it and had no medical card.

Prof. Casey also told the court Ms Doyle had previously been under psychiatric care in Tallaght.

The deceased's brother Noel Byrne told Mr Bernard Condon SC prosecuting that there were four children in the family and they grew up in Sallynoggin just outside Dun Laoghaire.

Mr Byrne said he was asked by gardaí to listen to a 999 call in order to identify the voices, which he said had been very distressing for him.

"It has been distressing over the last number of years," Mr Byrne told the court.

Under cross-examination he told Mr Grehan who put it to him that children were not possible in his brother's marriage because of the medication his sister-in-law was on.

Mr Byrne replied she had always wanted children and said he knew of one incident where Ms Doyle had been hospitalised in the past.

A statement of Patricia Horgan of the human resources department of RPS Engineering where Mr Byrne was employed was read to the court stating that he earned €91,663 a year.

He also had a death-in-service benefit of €323,726.72, which includes a pension of €48,138 and holiday pay.

Deputy State Pathologist Dr Michael Curtis told the court the cause of death was multiple stab wounds.

Dr Curtis said a toxicology report showed Mr Byrne was intoxicated with an alcohol level of 139 milligrams per 100 millitres of blood and there was also a trace of tranquilizer.

He said Mr Byrne had sustained in excess of 60 stab wounds including defensive wounds.

In cross-examination Dr Curtis agreed with Mr Grehan that it would be fair to use the term "overkill".

The jury heard earlier that Ms Doyle had previously stabbed the engineer twice on one occasion in 2006 but there had been no prosecution in relation to that.

The trial, which is presided over by Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan, continues tomorrow.