Good morning. Here are the key local Irish stories from The Irish Times:
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Killarney murder: Postmortem finds US woman Jamey Carney (43) died from suffocation, not blunt-force injuries as initially reported. Gardaí are liaising with foreign police as the investigation continues.
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UCD discrimination claim: A teacher pursuing a 24-year-old gender discrimination case against UCD says he was more qualified than a woman admitted ahead of him to a master’s course. The High Court has set a hearing date for May 2027 and allowed an application to cross-examine UCD’s legal director.
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Connemara blaze: A major fire in Recess, Co Galway, destroyed a pub, grocery, post office and craft shop at a large commercial premises. Local representatives called it a major loss for the area.
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Nuclear risk claim: Former NATO deputy secretary general Rose Gottemoeller told a Dublin conference that Vladimir Putin considered using a tactical nuclear weapon in October 2022 before being dissuaded, amid Russian setbacks in Kherson.
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School places crunch: St Corban’s NS in Naas, Co Kildare, was refused an extra teacher after enrolling 25 additional pupils in a placements “crisis,” forcing two senior infant groups to merge into a single first class of 34 from September.
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Court contempt move: A High Court judge ordered the mother of a child rape victim to appear over alleged contempt after she purportedly filmed her daughter’s rapist in court and posted the video on Facebook. The man’s identity remains protected by law.
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Waterford murder trial: A man accused of murdering his partner told paramedics she had several falls the night before her death, including a fall down stairs, a jury heard at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Waterford.
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Legal aid row fallout: A judge adjourned two sex-abuse trials to the autumn due to a lack of legal representation amid an ongoing criminal legal aid fees dispute with the Department of Justice, calling the situation a “mess.” Parties in both cases had travelled from abroad.
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Málaga crash funeral: Mourners in Mullingar heard a heartfelt tribute to 23-year-old Michaela Newcombe, one of three family members killed in a car crash near Málaga. A priest said burying a child “disrupts the rhythm of the world.”
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€2m cannabis seizure: Gardaí arrested two men and seized about €2 million worth of cannabis vapes and edibles in raids on five retail premises and two homes across Castlebar, Longford, Drogheda and Carlow, led by the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau.