The jury in the Ashling Murphy murder trial has begun its deliberations.
33-year-old Jozef Puska, of Lynally Grove, Mucklagh, Co Offaly, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of the schoolteacher along the Grand Canal in Tullamore on January 12th 2022.
Mr Justice Tony Hunt sent the jury of nine men and three women to start its deliberations at 3:35 this afternoon.
Earlier this afternoon, Mr Justice Tony Hunt told the jury he’d give them directions in parts of the evidence: Listed as the confessions made by Jozef Puska in St James Hospital, the DNA evidence, inferences from interview’s with Garda, Lies told outside of court – and eye witness accounts.
In relation to the confessions, Mr Justice Hunt said to the jurors it is true to say that people do have wrongly confessed to things and they have to be assured by prosecution that there is no reasonable doubt about what Jozef Puska said.
He added that they must assess if the DNA profile match of Jozef Puska found under Ashling Murphy’s fingernails has no reasonable doubt it belongs to someone else – then decide if it’s there as a result of a fatal attack – or if he was assisting her. The judge also told the jurors that for inference interviews – that they should assess if Jozef Puska offered an explanation to Gardai in Tullamore garda station in relation to the bike found at the scene, the DNA evidence and for his presence at the scene – or if he refused or failed to do so.
