Spotlight on two Laois murders in new release from true crime author
Author of 'Lady Killers' Pat Doran
THE gruesome tale of two Laois women who committed murder and were sentenced to death has been cracked open by Enniscorthy historical fiction and true crime author Pat Doran with the release of his third and latest book .
With the book released and Pat zipping up and down the length and breadth of Ireland to deliver copies to bookstores nationwide, the Enniscorthy man sat down with the to discuss and his career to date Turning to Laois first, Pat gave a brief summation of the in-depth account that each murder is afforded in his book, with the inherent drama of each ‘episode’ written in a deliberate narrative style â think how most true crime documentaries combine some form of live actors and sets with interviews to create a greater sense of immersion.
The first of the Laois murders was committed by one Mary Daly from Clonbrock, Crettyard, working in consort with her alleged boyfriend Joseph Taylor. They murdered her husband John Daly on 17 June 1902. Arguably one of the most dramatic twists in that particular tale sprang from the individuals who inadvertently brought her to justice; her 11-year-old son and her nine-year-old daughter. Mary Daly was the last woman to be executed in Tullamore Jail, hanged on 9 January 1903.
Frances Cox, hailing from the village of Roskeen in Mountmellick was the next murderer. Thirty years old and unmarried, the woman's 34-year-old brother died under what were described as suspicious circumstances on Saturday 29 May 1948. In a classic case of ‘almost got away with it,’ the brothers' funeral cortege was snaking towards the cemetery when gardaí abruptly intervened; before a crowd of horrified mourners, the coffin was pulled from the hearse, placed behind a hurriedly erected screen and the deceased's organs removed in a shower of blood and gore. The reason? Frances Cox murder of her brother with the poison strychnine meant the police had to conduct a toxicology report before he was buried, though initially sentenced to death, her punishment was commuted to 14 years in Mountjoy Jail.
These are just two of the crimes featured in the 11-part book, with Pat identifying his favourites in terms of the sheer drama of it all, as a case in Wexford where a woman was accused of murdering her nephew over fears that his plans to start a family would see her evicted from the family home and one involving an Italian woman in Dublin.
Prior to embarking on the true crime chapter of his life, Pat Doran worked as a truck driver for 30 years. When he finally hit the big 30 in the job, he describes himself as feeling that enough was enough. In short, he was ready, with the support of his wife without whom it would have been impossible, to embark on a full-time literary career.
Tapping into his passion for history, Pat researched, wrote and eventually published his debut: which told what the author described as the forgotten history of the town as the last area to surrender to the British in 1916.
Following the book's resounding success, catapulted by huge local interest, Pat decided to pursue an interesting lead he stumbled across in his research for a previous book, a newspaper clipping about a man twice convicted of a murder in Bantry who, to this day, it is believed was innocent, which eventually became his second book
Pat is what is called an indie published author, an individual who has bypassed the traditional publishing sector to take on both the costs and ownership of the product in selling direct to consumer, an increasingly popular avenue many other up-and-coming authors are venturing into. Indie, or independent publishing, comes with benefits â sell direct, more share of the profits â and challenges: building up a rapport with booksellers and taking on the cost of production.
Despite the challenges, however, Pat is happy with the arrangement and seems to have especially enjoyed driving all over the country to build up relationships with booksellers as diverse as Charlie Byrnes in Galway, the Mayo Book Store and in All Books Portlaoise.
He is currently at work on his next book, another slice of niche Irish true crime, which he expects will be released next winter, so keep an eye out on the shelves for a gift that will chill this Christmas in more ways than one.
