A jury must not allow a murder accused’s comments to gardaí about “illegal immigrants” and “invaders” to prejudice their verdict, a barrister has told the Central Criminal Court.
Michael Bowman SC said his client, Mark Lee (44), may have “objectionable and unsavoury” views, but it is forbidden to allow such prejudice to “overwhelm the forensic process of sifting through the evidence”.
The prosecution, he said, has “bent over backwards” to tell the jury the accused must have known that the deceased was a foreigner. However, Mr Bowman said, there is no evidence Mr Lee or either of his co-accused said anything about foreigners before the assault.
Mr Lee, of no fixed abode, and Anthony Delappe, of Melrose Avenue, Clondalkin, Dublin, have pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Josip Strok at Grangeview Way in Clondalkin on April 3rd, 2024. Connor Rafferty of Castlegrange Close, Clondalkin, has pleaded not guilty to Mr Strok’s murder.
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All three have pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to David Druzinec (29) at the same location.
It is the prosecution’s case that on March 30th last year, Mr Lee was told of an alleged assault on a teenage boy at a nearby bus stop and alerted the two other accused. The prosecution alleges the three then followed Mr Strok and Mr Druzinec and assaulted them in the street.
Mr Strok died four days later from blunt-force injuries sustained in the attack.
Mr Bowman said the prosecution has relied on comments Mr Lee made to gardaí, about “illegal immigrants” and “invaders”, two days after the assault to suggest he “hates foreigners so much” he ran out of his house and beat one of them to death.
While Mr Bowman described Mr Lee’s comments as “objectionable and unsavoury”, he warned the jury against prejudice that might lead them to think he is more likely to commit this kind of offence because he holds certain views. Mr Bowman also challenged the prosecution’s assertion that the nature of the assault, involving kicks, stamps, punches and striking with a pickaxe handle and a crutch, proved the three accused intended to cause at least serious injury.
The injuries suffered by Mr Strok bear a “remarkable similarity” to those sustained by Mr Druzinec, he said. The one exception is a fracture to the back of Mr Strok’s skull, which caused severe trauma and death.
State Pathologist Dr Heidi Okkers told the trial this injury was “most likely” caused by a fall backwards on to the ground. Given that Mr Druzinec recovered from his injuries, Mr Bowman asked the jury to consider whether the natural and probable consequence of such an assault is serious injury or death. Mr Bowman also questioned why, if Mr Lee wanted to cause serious injury, he did not bring with him a wheel brace that gardaí found in his home during a search two days later.
“I say he didn’t bring the wheel brace because he didn’t intend to kill or cause serious injury,” Mr Bowman said, adding that the assault was “dreadful and cowardly”.
In pleading guilty to manslaughter, Mr Bowman said, his client accepts responsibility for Mr Strok’s death. He asked the jury to “leave outside any views you have in relation to the rightness or wrongness of views expressed” and to come to a true verdict.
The prosecution, he said, has put forward material that falls short of proof beyond reasonable doubt on the murder charge. “I say the appropriate verdict is one of manslaughter in relation to Mark Lee,” he said.
Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring will deliver her charge to the jury of six men and six women next Tuesday.
