Five Limerick men convicted of killing Kieran Keane lose their appeal at Supreme Court
FIVE Limerick men have lost a bid to bring an appeal against their convictions for the murder of crime boss Kieran to the Supreme Court.
Last month lawyers for Dessie Dundon, Christopher Costello, James McCarthy, David Stanners and Anthony McCarthy sought to have their clients' cases referred to the Supreme Court
They argued that there had been "significant media intrusion" before the trial and referred to the image of a "two-fingered gesture" that had appeared in newspapers, as well as discussions that related to the case that were broadcast on the Late Late Show on RTE1.
Lawyers for the convicted men also argued that the trial judge erred in refusing to discharge the jury when it emerged a Garda clerical officer had been empanelled on the jury.
Today the Court-of-Criminal Appeal rejected their case finding that none of the applicants had raised a point of law of exceptional public importance to warrant a supreme court hearing.
None of the five convicted killers were in court for this morning's ruling because of "threatening and abusive" behaviour at their appeal in 2007 when copies of heavy judgments were thrown at the judges.
Convicted criminal Keane, 36, was killed in an execution style killing on January 29, 2003. His nephew, Owen Treacy, was stabbed 17 times and survived the murder attempt.
The State's case had been that all five acted as part of a joint enterprise.
Evidence in the 31-day trial was heard in Cloverhill Courthouse, attached to Wheatfield Prison, for security reasons.
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Tuesday 22 May 2012
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