By Gordon Deegan

A judge has told two neighbours involved in a land boundary row that “life is too short for neighbours to be having disagreements”.

At Ennis Circuit Court, Judge Brian O’Callaghan stated that he hopes “that some of the issues between you can be resolved”.

Judge O’Callaghan made his comments after a jury unanimously delivered a ’not guilty’ verdict in the case of 46-year-old Rory Murphy, who was accused of assault causing harm of his 71-year-old neighbour, John Fisher on January 15, 2019 at Clifden, outside the Burren village of Corofin.

At the end of the two day trial, Judge O’Callaghan told Murphy: “You came to court an innocent man and you leave this court today an innocent man.”

Altercation at land boundary

In a voluntary interview with Gardaí, Rory Murphy did admit to headbutting John Fisher at the boundary site, but stated that this was in self defence after Fisher hit him with a hammer across the head.

Murphy of Clifden, Corofin, told Gardaí in the interview that he struck Fisher with a headbutt “because I had to do something because I was in fear of my life”.

In his closing speech to the jury, counsel for Murphy, barrister Pat Whyms stated: “Certainly if someone attacks you with a hammer, you are entitled to defend yourself.”

The barrister stated that Fisher’s account of the altercation “is preposterous”.

He stated that John Fisher’s evidence “was absolute poppycock and just ridiculous”.

In his interview with Gardaí, Murphy denied insulting Fisher about his English nationality and also denied threatening to kill him.

Land boundary dispute

Murphy’s barrister stated that on the day, Fisher’s act of erecting the fence was an attempt to obstruct the Murphys from accessing lands that in their minds they are entitled to access.

Pat Whyms stated: “They were not happy about that and wanted to confront Mr. Fisher about it.”

The barrister added that the evidence provided by Fisher in the case “was a mix of the bizarre and the downright false”.

Pat Whyms told the court that John Fisher some time after the altercation “admitted to hitting himself on the head with a hammer to see what it was like”.

The legal counsel described this is as “bonkers” and “ludicrous nonsense”.

Evidence to court

A native of Leicester in the UK and living at Clifden, Corofin for the past 25 years, John Fisher said because he was terrified and in fear of his life, he hit Rory Murphy on the head three times with the hammer while Murphy was on top of him.

He said: “It was not as hard as I could have – it was just ’tap, tap, tap’.”

Fisher said that the taps were ‘gentle – I didn’t want to hurt him”.

Fisher added that he saw blood coming from Murphy. The row was defused after Fisher handed the hammer to Murphy’s wife.