A MAN who was diagnosed with a serious mental illness did not have access to anti-psychotic medication when he slashed another man’s throat at an addiction treatment centre, the accused’s trial heard on Wednesday.
It is accepted by all parties that the accused, Sean Buemer (29), of Edenmore Crescent, Raheny, County Dublin, slashed Aaron Babbington’s throat with a makeshift knife he made by attaching a razor blade to a plastic handle.
The two men were participating in a residential alcohol detox programme at Cuan Mhuire addiction treatment centre, Bruree, County Limerick, when the attack occurred during the early hours of December 13, 2019.
Mr Beumer pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity before Limerick Circuit Criminal Court to charges of assault causing harm and producing a makeshift knife on Mr Babbington (30s), of Churchfield, County Cork.
The court heard Mr Beumer had an established long-term diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia, however a GP who assessed him for his suitability to attend the detox programme at Cuan Mhuire was not aware of this diagnosis.
Cuan Mhuire was also not aware of Mr Beumer’s diagnosed mental health condition, nor his prescribed anti-psychotic mediation.
Cuan Mhuire’s detox policy at the time required all participants’ non-medical medications be discontinued for the duration of the programme. Mr Beumer had, in the days prior to the attack, requested his medication but he did not receive it, the trial heard.
Mr Buemer told Gardaí after his arrest that 15 days into his residency at Cuan Mhuire, and with psychotic thoughts “building” in his mind, he “exploded” and slashed Mr Babbington’s throat with the razor, the court heard.
Beumer told Gardaí after his arrest that, in the days leading up to him attacking Mr Babbington, he heard “voices” and experienced hallucinations that “brainwashed” him into believing he and his family would be murdered if he didn’t act.
Dr Ivan Murray, a forensic consultant psychiatrist and a key witness for the defence, provided uncontested evidence that, in his professional opinion, there was a “definite link” between Mr Beumer not receiving his anti-psychotic medication and the assault on Mr Babbington.
Dr Murray said, in his opinion, Mr Beumer’s diagnosed condition was “significantly exacerbated” when he did not receive his medication.
It was his view that Mr Beumer would not have been able to shake off the “false thoughts”, “delusions”, and “hallucinations” that he reported experiencing while off his meds.
Dr Murray, who carried out an independent medical assessment on Mr Beumer in May 2025, said he believed that being off his mediation caused Mr Beumer to suffer a psychotic relapse which led to him “suffering from a mental disorder at the time that rendered him unable to refrain from his actions and which overwhelmed his decision making”.
Dr Murray said, in his opinion, that Mr Beumer “meets the criteria” of being not guilty of the offences by reason of insanity.
The psychiatrist agreed with prosecuting barrister Lily Buckley that Mr Beumer’s schizophrenia should have been flagged with Cuan Mhuire in advance of him attending the centre to participate in its alcohol detox programme.
He said, in his opinion, Mr Beumer requires a “multi-disciplinary” medical approach to treating his schizophrenia, including an MRI scan on his brain in order to discern the possibility, albeit a “rare” one, that Beumer may be suffering from a lesion on his brain that could cause similar mental health difficulties.
In her closing speech to the jury, Ms Buckley said there were three verdicts open to the jury – guilty, not guilty, or not guilty by reason of insanity.
In his closing speech, Mr Beumer’s barrister, senior counsel Lorcan Connolly, said Mr Beumer was responsible for the attack, but argued his client was not of sound mind at the time and therefore he was not guilty of the offences by reason of insanity.
“The fact is Mr Beumer needed medication, he didn’t get it, which resulted in him cracking and doing what he did,” Mr Connolly said.
The jury of seven men and five women is expected to retire Thursday to consider their verdict.
