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You are listening to the Mens Rhea Podcast,

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and this is the story of

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Margrish and Martin Glenn.

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Balinamore Bridge is a tiny village which

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sits along the Galway-Roscommon border,

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north of Balinasloe Town in County

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Galway.

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The area is characterised by its

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unusual turreted nine-arch

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bridge that stretches across the Shriven

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River, giving it a distinctly medieval

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feel.

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Much of the surrounding region is very rural,

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with farms and small holdings dotted

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along the landscape.

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Margaret Glenn had spent her whole life

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in Balinamore Bridge, where she resided in

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a two-bedroomed house on a 12-acre

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holding, along with her brother Martin.

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Neither sibling had ever married, instead

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choosing to live together and run the land,

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where they had farmed a small stock of sheep.

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As they advanced in age, the pair were said to

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have become increasingly difficult and set

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in their ways, with Margaret in particular

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described as being, quote, very cranky.

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By the late 1970s, both Margaret

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and Martin were in their 80s and their health was

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failing. Crippled with arthritis,

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Martin was confined to a wheelchair

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and Margaret needed a walking aid to get

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around. Dr Joseph

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Daly, who attended to the couple, had advised

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them on many occasions to go to a nursing

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home as they both required full-time care,

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but they were adamant on staying in their own

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house.

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pendant li in nineteen seventy seven

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the gluons decided to employ the help of

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michael joseph kelly who was the son

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of an old friend of theirs the arrangement

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was that kelly a single man who worked

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as a steeler actor would stay in the house

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with the couple

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he would help them out around the home and tend

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to the livestock and would sleep in the

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same bedroom as market glen

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however this arrangement ended after

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a year with kelly no longer able to

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tolerate living with the couple who he

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described as close very contrary

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and hard to live with following

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this kelly's brother christopher went to stay

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with the glenn's instead bus p to

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left after a short amount of time

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over the next three years the situation

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deteriorated even further for the siblings

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martin who by then was eighty

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seven years old was completely bed

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ridden and margaret who was eighty five could

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not care adequately for him

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they relied on neighbors for daily assistance

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but what their care needs increasing this

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was becoming less and less visible

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the district nurse had been providing ongoing

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care to the couple but they repeatedly fell out

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with her and told her more than once not

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to come by the house anymore

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the local meals on wheels service was also

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directed not to call has margaret glenn

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said that their dinners were close trash

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and so it was in december of nineteen

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eighty that margaret glenn contacted

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michael kelly then age twenty seven

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and asked him to come back and stay with them again

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margaret promised that of kelly agree to

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look after them they would leave him the house

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land and all of their money in there will

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he eventually agreed and returned to

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live with the glenn's in january of nineteen

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eighty one the

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arrangement was fine for the first few months

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with kelly continuing to work as a steel

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rector by day but

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as time went on his relationship

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with the glenn's began to sour once again

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the couple became unreasonable and demanding

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and of kelly was not home by half past

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ten they would lock him out of the house for

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the nice an argument

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also

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morning, many of the neighbours had gone to

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mass and so it was some time before he

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managed to do so.

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Fire units eventually arrived in from

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Ballonneslow and Loch Ray, and

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the firefighters entered the building to retrieve

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Margaret and Martin Glynn from the burning cottage.

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Dr Joseph Daly, who had also been called

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to the scene, examined both siblings

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but unfortunately nothing could be done

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for either of them and they were pronounced dead.

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The doctor noted that Margaret's body was burned

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along the left side.

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On first inspection, firefighters found

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that the fire seemed to have originated in Margaret

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Glynn's bedroom, with concentrated damage

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found along one side of the bed and across

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the headboard.

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However apart from this, there didn't seem to be much

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fire damage or heat distortion. A number

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of candles were found on the floor, both

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around and under the bed.

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Father James Smith, who was the local parish

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priest, attended the scene and administered

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the last rites to the Glynn's. As

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he anointed Martin Glynn, he noticed that

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the man's body was still warm. He

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anointed Margaret Glynn as she was being transported

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to the waiting ambulance, her body wrapped

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up. As forensic

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experts began to examine the scene to determine

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what had caused the blaze, the bodies

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of Margaret and Martin Glynn were removed

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to Portiungglow Hospital to await post-mortem

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examinations by state pathologist Dr.

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John Harbison.

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It was initially assumed that the fire was

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a tragic accident

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and that the Glynn's had been overcome by the fumes

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and died of smoke inhalation.

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However, Dr. Harbison's examination

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revealed some surprising facts, which

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in reality left more questions to

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be answered than anything else.

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Martin Glynn was found to have died of

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natural causes before the fire.

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Dr. Harbison gave the cause of death as pneumonia.

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He found no injury of any kind to

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the body and no evidence of burning or fire

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damage.

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Martin Glynn's blood also showed a normal

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level of carbon monoxide.

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suggesting that he had not been breathing when

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the fire started.

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In contrast, Margaret Glynn was found

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to have had a number of unexplained injuries

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to her body, including bruising

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on the right side of her head which extended down

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to the base of her neck. Bruising

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was also found along her spine.

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Despite the severe burns found along

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the left-hand side of her body,

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Margaret Glynn had no soot in her

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voice box, indicating that no smoke

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had been inhaled.

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There appeared to be an injury to her larynx

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and there was evidence of bleeding in the lungs.

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These factors, along with the absence of

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soot in the larynx, led Dr. Harbison

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to form the opinion that Margaret Glynn had

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died of asphyxia due to strangulation.

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On the basis of Dr. Harbison's findings,

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Gardee began to look closer into the lives

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of the Glynn's. Officers spoke

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to Michael Kelly who gave an initial statement

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to Detective Sergeant PJ Pryor outlining

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his account of the morning of November 15th.

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He told the detectives that he had woken to the

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strong smell of smoke which frightened him. He

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said he jumped out of bed and pulled on his clothes

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and wellingtons, shouting to Mark and

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Glynn to try and rouse him. Kelly

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said that he could see clouds of smoke coming

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from Margaret's room and when he shouted for

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her he got no answer. Given

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that the worst of the smoke hadn't yet reached

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the bedroom he was in, he assumed that Mark

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and Glynn was okay so he ran to Margaret's

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room to get her out. The bed

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was alight and Kelly said he caught Margaret's

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feet and tried to pull her but he couldn't shift

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her

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and eventually he was driven from the room by

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smoke and flames.

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He ran to the neighbouring house to get Michael

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Donahue

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and the two men went back in to try and

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rescue the Glynn's but their attempts

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were unsuccessful and they were forced

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from the house by the smoke.

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When asked about his movements on the day before

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the fire Kelly told Detective Sergeant

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Pryor that he had left the house to go to work at

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around 11am and had returned

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back to the house at half-

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past six that evening.

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Kelly claimed that Martin was in bed and

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that Margaret had retired to her own room

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at around 10pm, taking a candle

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from under the kitchen table as she always did.

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When asked why Margaret Glynn would use a candle

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in a house that had running electricity, Kelly

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said that she didn't like to use the light

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as there were no curtains in the bedroom and

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switching the light on would compromise her

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privacy.

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He also said that she couldn't reach the

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light switch to turn it off from her bed and

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instead it was her habit to take a lit

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candle which she would place on the floor or

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on a chair by her bedside. Kelly

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said he had gone to bed a bit later and that

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when he lay down he could see the candle

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flickering through the open door of Margaret's bedroom.

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When Michael Kelly gave this account to Garde

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he failed to mention the fact that he had been

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locked out of the Glynn's cottage the night before

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and that in reality he hadn't managed

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to get back in until 3am.

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In addition to this, when Kelly met

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Michael Dunahue later in the evening on November

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15th he had asked him not to tell

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the Garde about what had gone on the previous

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night.

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As the investigation into the fire developed

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into a murder inquiry, officers started

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to examine this initial statement given

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by Kelly in more detail.

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By all witness accounts the Glynn's had

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been difficult people to deal with and

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now here was the person who was closest

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to them with a big discrepancy in

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his statement.

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However there were still a number of glaring

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perplexities hanging over the whole

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situation. Martin Glynn

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had died of natural causes so

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how did that tie in with the suspected

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murder of his sister

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and the subsequent fire?

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On the 22nd of November Michael Kelly

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was brought in for another interview,

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this time with Detective Sergeant Joseph

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Shelley and Detective Sergeant Patrick

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Lina.

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Detective Sergeant Shelley was a member of the

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Garde murder squad that operated during

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the 1970s and 80s in Ireland.

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The unit was an exclusive hand-picked

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It was the prosecution's case, he said, that

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Margaret Glynn had been strangled, and

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that the fire was set in an attempt to

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destroy evidence.

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Patrick Cahill, who was one of the firemen

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who attended the blaze at the Glynn's house,

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told the court that his team needed

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to put on breathing apparatus before entering

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the home.

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He said that in one of the rooms he saw what looked

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like a white turnip or football in a

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bed, but this later turned out to

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be the body of Margaret Glynn. The

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fire seemed to be concentrated along one

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side and across the headboard of this bed,

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and upon inspection, Mr Cahill

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saw four used candles on the ground

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around and under the bed lying on their sides.

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None of them were lighting, he said.

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The Glynn's nearest neighbour, Michael Dunahue,

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gave evidence next. He recalled

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seeing Michael Kelly driving to work

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at 11am the day before the fire. Dunahue

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said that he saw Kelly again at around

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2pm that day, when Kelly told him that

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he was back early because he'd been unable

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to get materials he needed for his work. Dunahue

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asked Kelly if he had been in with the Glynn's, and

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Kelly responded that they had been in great

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form earlier that morning but that now

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the house was all locked up, meaning he was

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locked out. Dunahue told

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the jury that Kelly spent the whole evening

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after that going between his house and the

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Glynn's cottage, trying to gain access.

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Kelly knocked on the doors and windows but

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Margaret Glynn would not let him in.

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Michael Dunahue advised Kelly to make the journey

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back to his family home but Kelly

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had refused to do so.

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Between half past 2 and 3am,

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Dunahue saw Kelly knocking on the door

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of the Glynn's house once again.

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He shoved at the door, which seemed to

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have something up against it on the inside.

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Dunahue said that he heard a few words pass

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between Kelly and Margaret Glynn

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before Kelly said quote, I'll

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not go, you fucking hell bitch.

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Margaret Glynn didn't respond to this, instead

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retreating back into the house and Dunahue

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said he heard some noises, followed by

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Kelly saying that he would go when he got his clothes.

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Donahue went to bed after this and when he woke

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the next morning at twenty to six he said

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that everything was nice and quiet. But

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at around half past nine, after

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his wife had gone to mass, Mr Donahue

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recalled he had seen Michael Kelly coming

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around the end of the house frantic.

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The two men went over to the Glynn's house and entered

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the property where Donahue described seeing

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a big roll of fire in the centre of the bed

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in Margaret's room. He went to Martin's

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room to see if he could save the man but he had been unable

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to see anything inside because of the smoke.

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He couldn't make out the bed or the chair. Mr Donahue

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had called out to Martin

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twice but got no answer. Unable

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to stand the smoke and heat any longer, Donahue

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and Kelly left the house. Donahue

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told Kelly that they needed to phone for help but

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Kelly didn't have his car keys and Donahue's

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bike was punctured so the accused set

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off up the road on foot to find

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someone who could help.

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Upon questioning from Senior Council, Martin

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Kennedy, Donahue said he had met Kelly again

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later that night and that he had said

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quote, anyone who comes now, the guards

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or security men, don't let on where I was

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last night. Under cross

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examination from Mr Patrick McEntee

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defending, Donahue said that the Glynn's

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needed a lot of attention. Martin

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was confined to a bed or a wheelchair

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and Margaret used a stick to get around. He

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said that both himself and his wife had been called

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on for assistance by Margaret Glynn regularly

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in the past

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and that there had been numerous incidents where

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one or other of the Glynn's had fallen by the fire

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in the house.

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When asked by Mr McEntee if the couple were

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bad tempered, Michael Donahue admitted

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that the years had taken their effect on the

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Glynn's and that he had seen them play

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cruel tricks on others but they

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had never done so to him.

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Michael Donahue's wife Bridget took the stand

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next.

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She said that Michael Kelly had come to her house

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on the Saturday afternoon complaining that the Glynn's

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wouldn't let him into the house.

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She said that he returned frequently that evening,

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each time telling her the same thing. Bridget

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recalled that the following morning she'd gone to

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mass and was shocked to learn that there had been

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a fire at the glens upon her return.

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Patti MacIntee asked Mrs Donahue

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if she was suppressing any information about

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the incident but she denied that she was.

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She affirmed that her statement given at the time

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of the fire was the whole truth and nothing but the

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truth. Mr MacIntee asked

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Bridget Donahue about her claim in her statement

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that Kelly did not have drink on him that evening

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and whether or not this was true.

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She responded that she could not remember exactly

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what she had said in her statement 16 months before

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but that whatever she had said at the time was

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the truth.

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She agreed with Mr MacIntee that she was annoyed

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with Kelly for repeatedly coming back to her

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house and complaining that evening.

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Patti MacIntee said to her quote, I suggest

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you sat and watched the Late Late Show and

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didn't bother going to the glens to see if they needed

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anything.

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Mrs Donahue said that she hadn't, that she

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had had a sore throat and she didn't want to leave her house.

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At this defence council asked quote,

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was your throat too sore to go 500 yards

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up the road to help an old man who lay dying

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in his dirty bed?

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Did you not feel done out because Kelly

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was willing to help them out and you were not?

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Bridget Donahue responded that it had been Mr

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Kelly's place to help the elderly neighbours.

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Then Mr Justice Gannon presiding

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asked Bridget Donahue whether she knew that Kelly

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had been trying to get into the glens house all evening.

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She told the judge that she did know he had been

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locked out but she didn't know why and

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that it wasn't unusual for Mr Kelly to find

19:35

himself in that position.

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Mrs Donahue added quote, We

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didn't like to interfere. Margaret Glynn

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was very active. She would be able to look

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after Martin and make tea for him.

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She agreed with Mr MacIntee that Kelly

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seemed anxious to get into the house to help

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the glens.

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On the second day of the trial, state pathologist

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Dr Harbison gave evidence to the court

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saying that he examined Ms Glynn's remains

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the day after the fire. He

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detailed bruising on the right side of the

20:04

woman's head which extended down to the base

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of her neck.

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He reported similar bruising down to

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Margaret Glenn's spine. He

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said that although there was severe burning

20:13

to parts of her body there was no such found

20:16

in her larynx, however

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there was evidence of bleeding

20:19

into the lungs.

20:21

Dr Harbison also said that the

20:23

larynx appeared fractured, although

20:25

this could not be verified. He

20:27

stated quote, in view of the injuries around

20:30

the larynx and the bleeding into the lungs, I

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formed the opinion that she died from asphyxia

20:34

due to strangulation. Dr

20:37

Harbison went on to tell the jury that Martin

20:39

Glenn's post-mortem showed that he had died

20:41

of pneumonia before the fire broke out,

20:44

and he pointed out that both the Glenn's

20:46

had just 2% of carbon monoxide

20:49

in their blood, which was within normal

20:51

range for adults. The lethal

20:53

concentration of carbon monoxide was 50%,

20:56

he said.

20:57

The pathologist continued quote, these

21:00

people had both died before the fire began.

21:03

Under cross by Patrick MacKenty, Dr

21:06

Harbison agreed that Margaret Glenn was

21:08

more advanced in decomposition than her

21:11

brother.

21:12

This was down to being closer to the fire, he

21:14

said. When asked about the evidence

21:16

of strangulation, the pathologist said that

21:18

while he found no asphyxial hemorrhages

21:20

above the area of bruising on the neck, he

21:23

did find some in the lungs.

21:25

According to Dr Harbison, this bleeding into

21:27

the lungs was an indication of the

21:29

effort made to breathe.

21:31

When questioned further, he acknowledged that

21:33

Margaret Glenn's hyoid bone was intact.

21:36

Mr MacKenty asked if the bruising on Margaret

21:39

Glenn's neck could have been caused by twisting

21:41

and turning in an effort to get away from the fire,

21:44

but Dr Harbison said that he did not accept

21:46

that this could happen. It was his opinion

21:48

that if clothing or similar had become twisted

21:51

around Margaret's neck, it would have had to have been

21:53

attached or caught on something solid to

21:55

cause strangulation. Further,

21:57

Dr Harbison asserted quote,

21:59

I cannot accept that a person would burn

22:02

without inhaling smoke if she were alive

22:04

at the outbreak of a fire."

22:06

Next Mr. Sean Cleary, second

22:08

fire officer, said that he arrived at the

22:10

house in Ballinamore Bridge at around half

22:13

past twelve on Sunday the 15th of November.

22:16

Mr. Cleary said that when he entered the house he

22:18

found it difficult to believe that there had been a fire

22:20

as he saw no evidence of the staining

22:23

which one would normally associate with smoke

22:25

damage.

22:26

He told the court that he had expected to see evidence

22:29

of heat distortion but he saw none. Upon

22:31

examination of Margaret Glenn's bedroom Mr.

22:34

Cleary discovered four candles on the floor

22:36

but he said that there was no hole going up through

22:38

the mattress so he concluded that these

22:41

candles could not have caused the fire.

22:44

On the wall beside the bed there was an area

22:46

of heavy smoke staining which rose to a peak

22:49

suggesting that this was where the fire had been

22:51

burning the longest. However there

22:53

was nothing evident there to account for what

22:55

had started the fire. Mr.

22:57

Cleary said that there was no heating appliance

22:59

in the room and although there were signs

23:01

that a fire had been lighting in the grate in the bedroom

23:04

it seemed that this had been extinguished before

23:06

the blaze broke out. Following

23:10

Mr. Cleary's testimony a number of witnesses

23:12

who knew the Glens personally gave evidence.

23:15

Father James Smith described the events of

23:17

November 15th and how Mark and Glenn's

23:19

body had still been warm when he administered

23:22

the last rites. Father Smith

23:24

said that two days after the fire Michael Kelly

23:26

visited him to make arrangements for the funerals.

23:29

The priest said that the man had given a very generous

23:32

offering towards the funeral costs and

23:34

that Kelly told him that Garde were giving him

23:36

quote a hard time of it. He

23:38

said that when he smelled smoke on the morning of the tragedy

23:41

he had gone straight to Margaret's room.

23:43

Kelly lamented that if he had gotten Martin

23:46

out of the house first

23:47

he may have saved him.

23:49

On questioning from the defence Father

23:51

Smith said that he knew the Glens were sick old people.

23:55

He said that although he didn't find them difficult

23:57

personally he agreed that they probably were.

24:00

When asked by Mr Macintee about Kelly's

24:02

statement that the Gardee were harassing him,

24:04

the priest said that Kelly hadn't elaborated

24:07

on what he meant or given any further detail.

24:11

Dr Joseph Daly, who had been the Glynne's

24:13

doctor for a number of years, gave evidence

24:15

on the state of their health. He said

24:17

he generally visited the couple once a month

24:20

and that they were both in poor health and poor

24:22

circumstances. The doctor said

24:24

that Martin was crippled with arthritis

24:26

but that Margaret was able to get around.

24:28

However, he said that they needed full-time

24:31

nursing care and that he advised them many

24:33

times to go into a nursing home,

24:35

which they refused to do. Dr

24:38

Daly detailed the events of November 15th

24:40

recalling how he was summoned to the Glynne's

24:43

house.

24:43

Smoke was billowing out of Margaret Glynne's

24:45

bedroom and when he was finally able to get into

24:48

the house he found both siblings to be deceased.

24:51

Counsel for the defence questioned Dr

24:53

Daly on whether or not the Glynne's could live independently,

24:56

to which the doctor said that they could only

24:59

survive if they had somebody to look after

25:01

them. They wanted to stay in their house,

25:03

he said, and they were determined to

25:05

die together.

25:06

Dr Daly agreed with Mr Macintee that

25:08

both Martin and Margaret were determined

25:11

to have their own way and that they appeared to be

25:13

ungrateful and could be very difficult.

25:15

He said that any time he visited them he would

25:18

hear complaints from them.

25:20

Then Kelly's initial statement, which

25:22

he gave to Detective Sergeant PJ Pryor,

25:25

was read to the court.

25:26

In it Kelly detailed how he knew

25:28

the Glynne's and how he came to live with them.

25:31

He also recounted the decline of their relationship,

25:34

claiming that he had been locked out of the house ten

25:36

times in the year he'd lived with the couple. When

25:39

asked about the notes made by Margaret Glynne in

25:41

the aftermath of the dead sheep situation, Kelly

25:44

said, quote, I was shown notes made

25:46

by Margaret Glynne in which she made allegations

25:48

against me, but there is no truth in any of

25:50

them. She was always making these notes,

25:52

especially when I came in late, but

25:54

I passed no remark on her as I thought she was mad.

25:58

When asked about the Glynne's financial search, Kelly said,

25:59

circumstances, the accused had told the investigating

26:02

Garde that both siblings had accounts with the

26:04

Bank of Ireland in Mount Beliou and

26:06

that there should have also been money in the house.

26:10

This statement also contained Kelly's first

26:12

account to Garde regarding his movements of

26:14

the evening before the fire, in which he

26:16

falsely claimed that he was in the house from

26:19

half-past six.

26:21

On the third day of the trial, Detective Sergeant

26:24

Joseph Shelley recalled his interview with Michael

26:26

Kelly, which took place a week after

26:28

the fire.

26:29

The detective claimed that upon asking

26:31

Kelly about Margaret Glenn's injuries, the

26:33

man had broken down, saying that he

26:35

had done it and that Margaret had driven

26:37

him to it.

26:39

Detective Shelley told the jury that Michael Kelly

26:41

told him

26:42

he had been locked out of the house all day and

26:44

when he finally managed to gain entry, he

26:46

went to bed. According to the detective,

26:48

Kelly said that when he woke the next morning he discovered

26:51

that Mark and Glenn was not breathing, so he

26:53

went to Margaret's room.

26:55

A portion of Kelly's statement was then read

26:57

to the court. According to an article

26:59

printed in the Irish Independent, the statement

27:01

read, quote, Maggie had driven me daft,

27:04

I picked up a blanket off her bed and put it over

27:06

her head. I then pressed on her neck with

27:08

my right hand and she started shouting,

27:10

don't do it, Mickeline.

27:12

I kept pressing on her neck until she stopped

27:14

breathing. The statement went

27:16

on to describe how Kelly had set fire to the

27:18

blanket before going to the

27:21

Donohue's house for assistance.

27:22

It continued, quote, the reason I

27:24

killed Maggie Glenn was because she had

27:27

driven me insane, giving out to me,

27:29

and had said bad things about me.

27:32

In Kelly's defence, Patrick MacIntee

27:34

put it to Detective Shelley that he had bullied Kelly

27:36

during his interview and had hammered

27:38

his fist on the table.

27:40

Detective Shelley denied this and also

27:42

refuted Kelly's claims that he had, quote, grabbed

27:45

the accused by the back of the head and threatened

27:47

to put him through a wall. Detective

27:50

John Gallagher gave an account of Kelly's demeanor

27:53

when he spoke to him after his appearance in court

27:55

on November 23rd when he was initially charged.

27:58

According to the detective, Kelly's

27:59

said, quote, The sooner I leave this world

28:02

the better. A mistake is a mistake, but

28:04

murder is something else. Detective

28:07

Gallagher recalled how Kelly had also allegedly

28:09

told him, quote, I wish to Jesus I

28:11

had got out before this. I don't care what happens

28:14

to me. It's terrible. Oh, God help me.

28:17

He said that Kelly had later added, quote,

28:19

I had nothing to do with the glins. I wouldn't lay a hand

28:21

on them. And you know that

28:23

didn't I take her for the pension on Friday and we

28:25

got on great. I did not lay a finger

28:27

on her.

28:29

Detective Sergeant PJ Pryor told the court

28:31

how he had arrested Michael Kelly on November

28:33

22nd on suspicion of causing malicious

28:36

damage by burning the Glenn home.

28:38

He took Kelly to Ballina Sloguarda station

28:41

where Kelly stated that he was innocent and hadn't

28:43

killed the elderly siblings whom he referred

28:45

to as the old pair.

28:47

After Kelly's interview with detectives

28:50

Shelley and Lina had finished, Detective

28:52

Pryor went to the interview room where Shelley

28:54

told him that Michael Kelly had made a full confession

28:56

and had admitted murdering Margaret and

28:59

setting the house alight.

29:01

Detective Sergeant Pryor told the jury that he had

29:03

asked Kelly how he was feeling, to which

29:05

he allegedly responded, quote, how would

29:07

I feel? She wanted to stick me many times

29:09

and I walked out. Jesus, Mary and Joseph,

29:12

why did I do it? Wouldn't I be a happy man

29:14

tonight if I walked out? He

29:16

also said that the accused seemed remorseful

29:19

and that when he was charged the following morning, Kelly

29:22

allegedly had replied that he didn't know he was

29:24

doing it.

29:25

Then Mrs Margaret Kilkenny, who

29:27

was the public health nurse for the district, recounted

29:30

her visit to the Glenn house on November 11th,

29:32

four days before the fire.

29:34

She claimed that Kelly had asked her, quote, how

29:37

long do you think this will go on? Mrs.

29:39

Kilkenny responded by telling him that since

29:41

he had come to live with the Glins, he had given them

29:43

a new lease of life and that

29:46

they could last another five years. She

29:48

asked Kelly if he would think of leaving them and

29:50

she said that he had told her that he couldn't, as

29:52

he was already at least £5,000 down

29:55

as a result of staying with them.

29:58

Next, Dr Declan Gilson.

29:59

a pathologist gave evidence

30:02

on behalf of the defence. He told the

30:04

jury that he had attended the state pathologist's

30:06

examination of Margaret Glynn's neck structures

30:09

and that he had seen no evidence of asphyxia,

30:11

as Dr. Harbison had suggested. Dr.

30:14

Gilsonnen said that the bleeding into the lungs

30:16

could have been for many reasons, including

30:19

heart failure. He said that he didn't agree

30:21

with Dr. Harbison's conclusion that the bleeding

30:23

was caused by asphyxial hemorrhage. In

30:27

an unusual move before the closing speeches

30:29

were made, Michael Kelly made an unsworn

30:32

statement to the jury,

30:33

stating, quote,

30:34

I did not kill Maggie Glynn. I

30:37

did not set fire to the house. The

30:39

statement I made to detectives, I made it

30:41

through fear and suggestions that were put to

30:43

me. I signed my name through fear.

30:47

In his closing argument to the jury, Mr. MacIntee

30:49

told them that there was at least a possibility,

30:52

that having set her bed on fire accidentally,

30:54

Margaret Glynn had injured her neck as she

30:57

attempted to turn or get away from the

30:59

fire. Prosecuting

31:01

counsel Martin Kennedy addressed the court,

31:03

saying that avarice was the motive for

31:05

the crime. Kelly wanted to get his hands

31:08

on the land.

31:09

The jury deliberated for four and a half hours

31:11

before returning with a unanimous verdict,

31:14

finding Michael Kelly guilty of the murder

31:16

of Margaret Glynn. As directed

31:18

by Justice Gannon before they retired,

31:21

the jury found Kelly not guilty on

31:23

the charge of arson. Michael

31:25

Kelly broke down and wept in court as he

31:27

was sentenced to the mandatory term of

31:29

life imprisonment. Patty MacIntee

31:32

applied for leave to appeal, but this was

31:34

refused by the judge.

31:45

Despite being found guilty of the murder

31:47

of Margaret Glynn, Michael Kelly continued

31:50

to maintain his innocence. In

31:52

October of 1985, following an appeal by a deputation acting

31:56

on behalf of Kelly,

31:58

Justice Minister Michael Noonan

31:59

promised to have the prisoner moved from Mountjoy

32:02

Prison to an open-style prison on

32:04

a state farm, where he would be allowed

32:06

to go home on occasional weekends.

32:09

However, following a cabinetry shuffle

32:11

in early 1986, Alan Dukes

32:14

took over as justice minister and he subsequently

32:16

refused to implement his predecessor's

32:19

decision.

32:20

As reported in the Conect Tribune in

32:22

protest to this decision, Michael Kelly

32:25

went on hunger strike,

32:26

resulting in Minister Dukes stating

32:28

that he wouldn't negotiate with Kelly while he

32:30

was refusing food. Kelly's

32:33

siblings, a sister who was serving as a nun

32:35

in Ballina Slough and two brothers,

32:37

implored Kelly to change his mind but he

32:39

continued to reject food.

32:41

A hundred people from his home parish of

32:44

Castle Blakeney signed a petition beseeching

32:46

Kelly to give up his strike, but he

32:49

still continued on. Eventually,

32:51

after more than three weeks without food, the

32:53

matter was finally resolved.

32:56

In 1989, an application was made to appoint

32:59

the Chief State Solicitor Mr. Louis Dockery

33:02

as an administrator of the estate of Martin

33:04

Glynn.

33:05

The case was a unique one in Ireland at the

33:07

time and it centred around the fact that

33:09

in April of 1981, Martin Glynn

33:12

had willed the 12 acres at Ballinamore

33:14

Bridge to Michael Kelly. Under the

33:16

terms of the will, the farm was to be left to

33:18

Margaret Glynn for her life, with the remainder

33:21

to Michael Kelly absolutely.

33:23

From 1981 to 1984, Kelly's brothers had been using the land for grazing

33:28

horses

33:29

and Martin Glynn's surviving second cousin

33:31

was now objecting to this and he wanted

33:33

the state to take control of the land.

33:36

As Michael Kelly was still serving his prison sentence,

33:39

he was unable to take any steps to administer

33:41

the estate.

33:42

In the end, Justice Gannon made a

33:45

temporary grant admitting the will and

33:47

codicil to probate and gave a grant

33:49

to the Chief State Solicitor to take in the

33:51

assets to protect them until Kelly was in

33:53

a position to apply for a grant himself.

33:57

Michael Kelly was released on license

33:59

in the early 1990s.

33:59

90s, having spent 10 years behind

34:02

bars. He continued to maintain

34:04

his innocence during his sentence and following

34:07

his release.

34:08

In the meantime, Detective Sergeant Shelley,

34:10

who had taken Kelly's alleged confession, continued

34:13

to come to public attention. Following

34:16

the trial of Kelly, Shelley went on to become embroiled

34:18

in the Kerry Baby's case, which resulted

34:20

in a young woman named Joanne Hayes and

34:22

her family being intimidated into giving false

34:25

confessions about a murder of which they had

34:27

no knowledge.

34:28

Shelley was also accused of assault by Ms

34:30

Hayes's brother. 11 years

34:33

later, Shelley, who had by then been promoted

34:35

to the rank of Detective Superintendent, arrived

34:38

in Letterkenny a week after the death of Rafoe

34:41

cattle dealer Richie Barron.

34:43

Mr. Barron had been killed in a hit and run

34:45

and as a result of the actions of Shelley

34:47

and a number of other senior officers and

34:50

a young publican called Frank McBrooty

34:52

Jr. was put in the frame with his whole family

34:54

finding themselves on the end of an horrific

34:57

campaign of Garda harassment and intimidation.

35:00

Yet again, in 2000, Shelley found

35:02

himself at the centre of another controversy when

35:05

he was called to an incident in Abilara

35:07

where a man named John Carthy held his family

35:10

under siege.

35:11

Mr. Carthy had a history of mental illness and

35:13

a history of heated relations with Garde.

35:16

Shelley was designated as Scene

35:18

Commander and what followed was a number

35:20

of failures on his part which resulted

35:23

in the shooting death of Mr. Carthy by

35:25

armed Garde. For more detail on that

35:27

case, go check out Episode 60.

35:30

Ultimately, by the early 2000s, it

35:33

transpired that Joseph Shelley was involved in

35:35

every tribunal into Garda behaviour

35:37

to that date in the history of the state.

35:40

In 2003, 10 years after his release on license, Michael

35:45

Kelly applied to the Court of Criminal Appeal to

35:47

have his conviction quashed.

35:49

Writing for the Connick Tribune, Eydon O'Fuelon

35:51

reported on the details of Kelly's appeal,

35:54

which centred around Kelly's claims that newly

35:56

discovered facts showed it would be

35:58

unsafe to continue to

35:59

accept that Margaret Glynn had died from

36:02

strangulation. He said

36:04

that there was a failure to consider the possibility

36:07

that Ms Glynn had died from inhalation

36:09

of poisonous fumes given off by the fire.

36:11

Kelly also stated that an expert

36:14

in attribution of ownership would be contesting

36:16

the authenticity of the statement in which

36:18

Kelly had allegedly confessed to the

36:21

murder of Ms Glynn. In 2007,

36:24

a three-judge panel heard evidence

36:26

from Michael Kelly. They accepted

36:28

that at the time of the original trial, the

36:30

defence team were not furnished with certain

36:33

photographs of Margaret Glynn's body.

36:35

When these pictures were subsequently examined

36:37

on behalf of Kelly by an expert pathologist,

36:40

it was claimed that new evidence came to light.

36:43

Acting on behalf of Michael Kelly, Anthony

36:45

Salmon, Senior Counsel, also told the

36:47

appeal judges that a new expert would give

36:49

evidence that cast doubts over the reliability

36:52

of Kelly's statement to Detective Shelley and

36:54

Linah. In relation to

36:56

the post-mortem photographs, an expert pathologist

36:59

called Dr Perdue, who worked for the UK

37:02

Home Office, stated that the pictures did

37:04

not safely show evidence of bruising around

37:06

the neck. Dr Perdue said

37:08

that there had been quote, such a degree of

37:10

decay to Margaret Glynn's body that it

37:12

would be unsafe to diagnose bruising.

37:15

It was Dr Perdue's opinion, based on these

37:18

photographs, that the cause of death should

37:20

have been recorded as quote, unassertainable.

37:24

Under cross-examination by counsel for the DPP

37:27

Tom O'Connell, Dr Perdue was asked

37:29

if it was unusual that two people would die

37:31

from natural causes in the same house on

37:33

the same night. Dr Perdue responded

37:36

by saying that it would be more unusual for

37:38

one person to die of natural causes and

37:40

the other to die of unnatural causes. Dr

37:43

Perdue also said that the claim that Michael

37:45

Kelly had gone into Margaret Glynn's bedroom,

37:48

strangled her and then set fire to her bed

37:50

was not consistent with what he found in the photographs.

37:54

Dr Perdue also cast doubt over

37:56

the portion of Kelly's alleged confession where

37:58

it was claimed that while strangling Margaret

37:59

Margaret Glynn with a blanket over her head, she

38:02

had pleaded with him to stop. Dr

38:04

Perdue said that if this strangulation

38:06

did in fact occur that it was highly unlikely

38:09

that Ms Glynn would have been able to speak while

38:11

somebody was attempting to strangle her. Northern

38:14

Ireland state pathologist Dr

38:16

Jack Crane testified on behalf of the

38:18

DPP.

38:19

He said that he had studied Margaret Glynn's initial

38:21

post-mortem report and that while

38:24

he agreed with most of what was reported

38:26

he did not agree with Dr Harbison's conclusion

38:28

that Ms Glynn died of manual strangulation.

38:31

However, Dr Crane did agree with

38:33

Dr Harbison's conclusion that there was nothing

38:36

to suggest that Margaret Glynn had died from natural

38:38

causes either. Michael

38:41

Kelly's alleged confession was also called

38:43

into question when Dr Michael George

38:45

Farringdon said that by using

38:47

a method known as Q-Some, he

38:49

had analysed the authorship of the statement

38:52

and found that it was the work of more than one person.

38:54

This supported Michael Kelly's

38:57

claim that the confession was coerced. Dr

39:00

Farringdon admitted that while the science

39:02

is not widely used, he said that his

39:04

services had been requested by a number of agencies

39:06

in the UK and the US. In

39:09

February of 2008, Michael Kelly's

39:12

appeal was rejected. The court

39:14

said that although the missing photos constituted

39:16

a newly discovered fact, they doubted

39:19

if such prejudicial photos would have been

39:21

used in the original trial in the first place.

39:24

The court also said that they did not accept

39:26

the use of the Q-Some technique in

39:28

relation to the statement made by Michael Kelly

39:30

to Gardee.

39:31

The CCA was not satisfied that

39:34

the technique had a properly established scientific

39:36

provenance.

39:38

In a final bid to have his conviction declared

39:41

a miscarriage of justice, Kelly applied

39:43

to the CCA to refer his case to

39:46

the Supreme Court on the grounds that the CCA

39:48

decision raised issues that hadn't previously

39:50

been dealt with by the Supreme Court. As

39:53

reported by Adon O'Fwallen in the Connick

39:56

Tribune, this application related to how

39:58

the CCA evaluated

39:59

a conflict over newly discovered

40:02

facts in the case.

40:03

However, the CCA ultimately found

40:05

that it was satisfied that no law of

40:07

public importance had been raised in Michael

40:09

Kelly's application, so the matter

40:12

would not be referred to the Supreme Court.

40:15

Ultimately, after almost 30 years of

40:18

protesting his innocence, 20 of

40:20

which Michael Kelly had spent as a free man,

40:22

his

40:22

bid to have his conviction overturned

40:25

was at an end. To

40:26

this day, he maintains his innocence

40:28

and despite his conviction standing, a

40:30

question remains as to whether the tragic events

40:33

of November 15th, 1981 amounted

40:36

to murder, or whether they were

40:38

simply a series of unfortunate

40:40

events which resulted in a grave

40:43

miscarriage of justice.

40:46

Thank you for listening to Mens Rea, a true crime

40:48

podcast. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter

40:50

and Instagram at MensReaPod, or

40:53

you can send an email to mensreapod at gmail.com.

40:56

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40:58

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41:01

Special thanks this week to Maeve Long and Aoife

41:03

Boyle.

41:04

Please do check it out at patreon.com

41:06

forward slash mensreapod. Our

41:09

theme music is Quinn's song The Dance Begins

41:11

by Kevin MacLeod. Additional music

41:14

is by Juanita Meisel and Kevin MacLeod.

41:16

This week's episode was researched and written

41:19

by the amazing Aileen Spearan. Additional

41:22

writing and production was by me, your host Sinead.

41:25

All sources for today's episode can be found

41:27

in the show notes or on our website www.mensreapod.com.

41:33

And so, till next time, don't

41:35

do anything I wouldn't do.

41:52

Hi-yote, hi-yote, hi-oid,

41:55

hi-oid bone. Hi-yote,

41:58

bone

41:59

was intact.

41:59

Hyode Boin. Hyode

42:02

Boin.