Willie O’Reilly: Media must hold their fire on big crime cases

The furore over the identification of the man later cleared of any involvement in Ashling Murphy’s murder reminds us that being first isn’t always best

Family members and mourners follow Aisling Murphy’s hearse as it leaves St Brigid’s Church in Co Offaly after her funeral last week. Picture: Getty

On Tuesday, at St Brigid’s Church in Mountbolus, Co Offaly, the funeral of Ashling Murphy took place. The 23-year-old primary school teacher’s life ended violently and tragically when she was killed while out jogging along the Grand Canal in Tullamore on January 12.

This was not an unprecedented incident – other women in recent times have been killed violently – yet this particular incident united people at home and abroad in shock and grief.

The ...