Sligo farmer probably struck by own horse, inquest hears

A Co Sligo farmer who was found collapsed on the side of the road was probably struck by one of his own horses, an inquest has heard.

Gardaí­ were initially unsure how John Meehan (74) sustained severe head injuries on a country road beside his land at Boutinagh, Curry, Co Sligo, on the evening of April 24th, 2014.

However, deputy state pathologist Dr Michael Curtis told Dublin Coroner's Court it is "overwhelmingly" probable that Mr Meehan died as a result of a collision with a horse.

Mr Meehan was found collapsed at about 9.30pm on the evening in question by motorist Desmond McCausland, who noticed something ahead of him on the side of the road. When he got out to investigate he realised that it was his neighbour, Mr Meehan.

The court heard that Mr Meehan would usually bring two horses from the adjacent field up to a yard for the night at about this time.

Mr McCausland said he could see injuries to Mr Meehan’s face and initially thought he had been struck by a car or assaulted. When he asked Mr Meehan what had happened, his reply was “get me up, get me up”. However, Mr McCausland called an ambulance as Mr Meehan was unable to get up.

Another man who came to the scene, Peter Phillips, said that Mr Meehan said something about “the ponies running underneath him”.

Mr Meehan was conscious but incoherent at the scene and resisted attempts by paramedics to help him. He was sedated in an ambulance on the way to Sligo General Hospital and never regained consciousness. He was transferred to Beaumont Hospital where he died two days after the accident.

Forensic investigation

Forensic collision investigators found no evidence at the scene or on Mr Meehan’s clothing that a car was involved. There was also no sign of a robbery at his home nearby.

Dr Curtis said that during the postmortem he found a severe head injuries, including a skull fracture and bleeding in the brain. Mr Meehan had also broken his neck. Dr Curtis said the overall features were “not typical of an assault”. The patterns of the injury could be “readily explained” by Mr Meehan being struck by a horse.

The court heard that a vet’s examination of one of Mr Meehan’s yearlings found the animal had an injury to its shoulder.

Dr Curtis said that, after hearing there was no evidence of a car being involved in the incident, he thought it “overwhelmingly” probable that the injuries were caused by a horse.

Coroner Dr Brian Farrell said he believed that "on the balance of probability" Mr Meehan had been struck by a horse but the precise circumstances were not known. He returned a narrative verdict outlining the facts.