The family of Dublin man who died after an assault outside a nightclub more than seven years ago has rejected an assertion by the State Pathologist that his death resulted from head injuries combined with the effects of alcohol.
State pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy said in an RTÉ television documentary aired last night that she stood by her belief that this was how Brian Murphy (18) died.
In September last year, a jury at an inquest into Mr Murphy's death returned a verdict of unlawful death.
The jury heard the postmortem conducted by then-State pathologist Prof John Harbison found that the young man's death was caused by cerebral oedema, or swelling of the brain, and the inhalation of blood. This was due to multiple facial injuries consistent with an assault, in Prof Harbison's view.
In a statement issued last night, the late Mr Murphy's parents, Denis and Mary, said it was "extremely distressing" for them to discuss the matter publicly to "set the record straight and to uphold the memory of our son Brian".
However, they felt they had no choice in view of the content of last night's programme, entitled Death Duties.
They cited the opinion of Prof Harbison that some of their son's facial injuries had resulted from "considerable violence" and that the resultant swelling of his brain was "the ultimate cause of death".
The Murphy family also cited the opinion of a pathologist engaged by the family, who said he did not believe the level of alcohol in Mr Murphy's system was sufficient to have played a part in his death.
"In the inquest, the coroner [Dr Brian Farrell] rejected Dr Cassidy's opinion. The medical evidence accepted by the court was the report of Prof John Harbison and the verdict of the coroner's court was one of unlawful killing. As far as we are concerned the matter was clarified for once and for all at that point," the statement said.
Prof Harbison, now retired, was not well enough to give evidence in person at the inquest into Mr Murphy's death.
However, differences emerged between his findings and the views of Dr Cassidy, when she reviewed the original postmortem file.
The retrial of one man on manslaughter charges, following a successful appeal against the original conviction, was halted after the differences emerged between the two pathologists.
RTÉ said its documentary had reflected the differing professional opinions on Mr Murphy's death in a fair, objective and balanced manner.
