Cocaine and alcohol would have accelerated death, pathologist tells Doneraile murder trial

Severe facial injuries complicated by the aspiration of blood caused the death of Barry Daly in his front garden in Doneraile while cocaine and alcohol may have accelerated death, a pathologist told the murder trial today.

A 17-year-old who cannot be identified as he is a juvenile pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter of 44-year-old Barry Daly at Rockview Terrace in Doneraile on October 12 2025. He is on trial before Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford and a jury of six men and six women at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork.

Assistant state pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster testified today that she went to 1 Rockview Terrace, Doneraile, at around noon last October 12 with Detective Inspector John O’Connell and examined the body of the 44-year-old postman found in the front garden of his home.

Dr Bolster testified: “The body was lying on the back with a large amount of blood staining present in the face and pooling of blood under the head.” 

Nearby in the garden, the pathologist saw the head of a wedge-type golf club broken approximately 1ft up the shaft.

“There was very severe facial trauma and it would have caused an awful lot of bleeding into the mouth, aspirated into the lungs – you cannot breathe and that ultimately leads to death.” 

Dr Bolster found there were no offensive injuries on the deceased, such as skinned knuckles, and no defensive injuries, such as marks or damage to the forearms.

The toxicology report found alcohol in the blood to the level of 213mgs per 100 mls, where the maximum permitted alcohol level for driving is 50mgs. 

Dr Bolster classified this level of alcohol as moderately high, such that one would expect it be approaching drunkenness in a normal social drinker. However, she added that the more alcohol one consumes on a regular basis, the less effect it has in terms of causing drunkenness.

Cocaine was also found in the blood of the deceased. For cocaine to be found in the blood it would need to have been taken in the previous six hours, and certainly not more than 12 hours before, she said.

Taken together, the alcohol and cocaine could have accelerated the death which was caused by trauma, jaw fractures and bleeding into the lungs, the pathologist said, explaining that alcohol and cocaine were not a cause of death in themselves.

Dr Bolster found a complete fracture displacement of the jawbone on the right side. The bone was fragmented into little pieces, Dr Bolster said. She also found a fractured displacement of the palate in the upper mouth.

She said the fragmentary fracture of the lower jawbone was caused by “very significant blow or blows from a weapon such as the head of a golf club.” 

One of the last prosecution witnesses, Robert Byrne, said he was playing hurling for Doneraile in the victory that was being celebrated in the town last October 11. 

He said that he saw Alex Deady, 20, and the 17-year-old coming back into Doneraile after there had been a number of altercations in the town, following closing time in the pubs. Mr Byrne said Alex Deady was hyper and shouted: ‘Barry Daly is knocked out over on his grass.” 

The trial of the teenager continues on Monday.