Accused 'told his gran in hospital he'd killed her son'

Trial of man charged with murdering own father

- BY ALISON O'RIORDAN

A MAN who pleaded not guilty to the murder of his father by reason of insanity, told his grandmother he had killed her son when she was in her hospital ward bed, a court has heard.

It was during the opening of the Central Criminal Court trial of Ross O'Rourke yesterday, that a prosecuting barrister said that expert psychiatrists for both the prosecution and defence are in agreement about the mental state of the accused when he killed his father.

Michael Bowman SC, defending Mr O'Rourke, made ten admissions of fact to the court yesterday on behalf of his client. These included that the accused caused the death of his father Stefan Nivelles Posschier at The Stables in Kinnegad, Co Westmeath between October 24 and 25, 2022.