A DUBLIN man received two life sentences at the Central Criminal Court last night after he was convicted of the murder of his wife Esther, and a baby girl, Jessica, who perished in a fire at their home.
Frank McCann, who was formerly joint owner of the Cooperage Bar, Blessington, Co Wicklow, sat impassively as the unanimous jury verdict was read to the court just before 7 p.m. on the 48th day of his trial.
Relatives of the dead woman and child wept and hugged each other and several whispered "Yes" as the verdict was read.
Mr Justice Carney told McCann he was imposing the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment on both murder counts. He said the sentences would run concurrently.
He thanked the six men and six women jurors for their service in the trial and exempted them from further jury service for life.
Mr Barry White SC, defending, sought leave to appeal on several counts, but this was refused by the judge. Mr Justice Carney also said he would make a decision on September 16th on the matter of granting a certificate for legal aid in the event of an appeal. He said he required a statement of means before deciding, that matter.
Frank McCann (36), a former international swimmer for Ireland and former president of the Leinster Branch of the Irish, Amateur Swimming Association, had denied the murder of his 36 year old wife and an 18 month old baby at their home at Butterfield Avenue, Rathfarnham, on September 4th, 1992.
The jury retired to consider its verdict at 6.15 p.m. on Wednesday and was sent to a hotel at 8 p.m. after failing to reach a decision. The jury returned to court at 10.30 am. yesterday and at 6.15 pm. the judge told the jurors they could reach a majority verdict on which at least 10 of them must agree.
The jury retired again and returned with its verdict at 6:45 p.m. It had deliberated for eight hours and 10 minutes in total.
The trial opened on June 10th and ran for almost 10 weeks. There was more than three weeks of legal argument in the absence of the jury which centred on the admissibility of interviews with McCann while destained under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act between November "4th and 6th, 1992. The interviews were admitted to the jury.
Evidence was heard from more than 120 witnesses and the entire investigation and legal proceedings involved are estimated to have cost more than £600,000.
An experiment carried out in England which aimed to reconstruct how the fire started is estimated to have cost up to £100,000.
McCann had previously gone on trial for both murders in January 1994, but the trial was aborted after he became unwell and was deemed unfit to plead.
Relatives and friends of Mrs Esther McCann, including her sisters Mrs Marian Leonard and Sister Monica O'Brien and her brother Mr Pat O'Brien, sat in courts throughout the trial. Their mother also attended court on a number of days.
Mr Derek McCann, a brother of the defendant, and his sister, Jeannette, who was the mother of Jessica, were also present for the verdict Ms Jeannette McCann broke down in tears and had to be consoled by friends and relatives after the jury returned its verdict.
Mrs Esther McCann and Jessica, who had lived with the McCanns since her birth died after what was described as "a raging inferno" engulfed their home early on September 4th, 1992.
Det Sgt Seamus Quinn suggested the fire, was set by spreading a large quantity of a fire accelerant such as petrol in the hall area. He suggested a gas blowtorch, turned on a quarter but not lit, was trained on a gas canister and also placed in the hallway.
Then the fire was probably ignited by a person standing in the front doorway and throwing in a match, he said.