Woman found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity remanded to Central Mental Hospital

Fiona Magennis

A 51-year-old woman found not guilty of the murder of her elderly father by reason of insanity has been remanded to the Central Mental Hospital.

Julie Flood, with an address at The Oyle, Oylegate, Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, had pleaded not guilty to the murder of her father, Patrick Flood, on April 14th, 2019, by reason of insanity.

At the Central Criminal Court on Friday, Shane Costelloe SC, for the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), said a bed is available at the hospital for Ms Flood and asked that the matter be put back to May 4th.

Mr Justice Paul McDermott remanded Ms Flood to the Central Mental Hospital in Portrane to appear again in court on May 4th. He thanked counsel for their assistance during what he described as a "difficult case".

The judge also expressed his thanks to the nursing staff who attended court during the case. "You were of great assistance to the trial," he said.

The trial heard Ms Flood, who has paranoid schizophrenia, was in the throes of a psychotic state when she stabbed her elderly father to death on his 94th birthday because she believed the voice of God told her he was an imposter.

The jury was also told during the trial that Ms Flood had a history of persecutory delusions and on one occasion believed she heard the voices of the band U2 accusing her of having raped one of the band members’ sisters.

The jury at the Central Criminal Court deliberated for just 48 minutes before returning their unanimous verdict on Thursday.

Mr Flood died on April 14th, 2019, two days after he was stabbed.

Before he died, the pensioner told Dr Paul Cromwell that he had woken up at 7am on April 12th to find his daughter standing in the hall screaming at him that he was an imposter. He said his daughter had come up to him and stabbed him in the stomach.

A post-mortem examination revealed Mr Flood was suffering from severe heart disease which could have resulted in his death at any time.

The post-mortem report, carried out by Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margot Bolster, stated the cause of death as congested cardiac failure complicated by ischemic colitis on the background of a recent stab wound.

The jury heard evidence from two psychiatrists who agreed that Ms Flood fulfilled the criteria for a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity.