A 74-year-old man has been charged with murdering a woman in a wooded area of Cork 42 years ago, reports RTE.
Noel Long, with an address in Maulban, Passage West, Co Cork, pleaded not guilty to murdering Nora Sheehan at an undisclosed location in the state between June 6 and June 12, 1981.
The 54-year-old’s body was found by foresters at a lookout point in Shippool Woods, Cork, six days after she went missing.
The jury was informed today that while this was a fairly ancient case and presented its own difficulties, it did not change the rules of engagement or the required standard of proof or burden.
However, this has implications as an old case because it is so long ago that several people you would expect to hear from on a different case will not be found, and some will die.
The jury was also informed that many of the physical exhibits had become inaccessible over time; Something is lost, damaged or unknown.
Nora Sheehan lived in Ballyfehan, Cork with her late husband James. They had three sons, James Jr., Jeremiah and Hugh, who are still alive, two of whom are at court, reports RTE.
Nora previously worked in a hospital, but seems to have suffered a fall and ill health. The court was told that she was a vulnerable person and had developed some anxiety at the time of her death.
On Saturday, June 6, 1981, she was bitten on the shoulder while trying to separate two fighting dogs near her home and went to the emergency department at Cork’s Southern Infirmary for treatment.
Nora Sheehan was reported to Togar Garda by her husband and son James and listed as missing.
At around 3:00 a.m. on June 12, 1981, two forest workers who were apparently distraught and now dead found the body while clearing two and a half miles away.
Gardaí accompany them to the scene, go down a very steep, overgrown slope and find the body of a woman among trees and brush.
The court heard that she was naked except for one pantyhose leg and that the rest of her clothes covered her face.
Gardai saw a bandage on her left arm. She was later identified as Nora Sheehan.
Noel Long’s car was impounded in Cork four days after Nora Sheehan’s body was found. He was 32 at the time and 20 years younger than Nora Sheehan. He is now 74 years old.
The vehicle was technically inspected, samples of carpet fibers and the interior of the boot were taken. These samples were brought to the Forensic Science Laboratory in Dublin along with items from the scene.
At the time, the Forensic Science Service was unable to test particularly small DNA samples, but the sample was sent to a specialist service in the UK and a DNA profile was made by a doctor there, reports RTE.
On November 30, 2021, material was obtained from Noel Long which, according to Mr. Grehan, matched the semen taken from Nora Sheehan’s body. He also says that the statistical chance of it coming from someone other than Noel Long is one in 20,000.
Noel Long pleaded not guilty to the murder.