The jury needed just over three hours of deliberations before returning a unanimous “guilty” verdict against Joseph Joyce. As her husband was taken off the dock and taken into custody by prison staff, Ellen Joyce fell to her knees, began to scream, and said, “Joe did not mean it. It was not meant to happen. God knows.” “My children and I need him. We need Joe.” Mr McDonagh, 18, suffered a fatal leg injury during a street fight outside Joseph Joyce’s home in Enniskillen in April 2020. In a three-week trial, a panel of eight men and four women were presented with CCTV footage that immortalized the fatal wound inflicted on Mr McDonagh. In the CCTV footage, Joyce appeared to be standing on the street outside his home. Featuring a hook in one hand and a plastic bottle filled with ammonia in the other, the video captured Joyce taking part in what the Crown described as a “street fight” against brothers Gerard, John and Jimmy McDonagh. The video also captured Joyce giving the deadly blow to the back of McDonagh’s left leg. Despite receiving medical treatment at both the scene and Southwestern Acute Hospital, Mr. McDonagh died on the morning of April 13, 2020. Since his arrest after Mr McDonagh’s death, Joyce has claimed that he acted in self-defense and protected himself, his family and his home at Coolcullen Meadow from attack by three brothers, who were armed with a knife and a bottle. and garden. shovel. However, the court rejected Joyce’s self-defense allegations and found him guilty of killing Mr McDonagh. The father of three, who heads Clon Elagh in Derry, was also unanimously found guilty of injuring Gerard McDonagh during the same incident, possessing two offense weapons – namely the hook and ammonia bottle – and the charge of challenge clash. Before the jurors could return their verdict, Joyce was crucified on the dock at Dungannon Crown Court in Belfast and sentenced to life in prison. Justice Rooney thanked the 12 members of the jury for their services, then turned to Joyce and said: “The only sentence I can give you is life, so we’ll come back and deal with Tariff later. “You will be notified when it will be done and your guarantee will be revoked, obviously.” Joyce will later be convicted of McDonagh’s murder.
