Chrissie Treacy’s case was first referred to her in March 2017 – 13 months before her death – by way of a safeguarding referral form filled out by a community nurse who had concerns for her welfare, arising out of the ongoing difficulties over land between her and her nephew, Michael Scott.

It is the prosecution’s case that Michael Scott deliberately ran over his aunt Christine ‘Chrissie’ (76) with an agricultural teleporter following a long-running dispute over land.

Mr Scott (58), of Gortanumera, Portumna, Co Galway, has pleaded not guilty to her murder on April 27, 2018, at her home in Derryhiney, Portumna. The defence says Ms Treacy’s death was a tragic accident.

On April 12, 2017, Ms Quinlan had a telephone conversation with Ms Treacy in which she advised her to phone the gardaí if she was “in fear or threatened”, and on the same day, rang her friend, Regina Donoghue, similarly advising her to contact the gardaí if she was concerned for Ms Treacy.

Two weeks later, on April 26, she and a colleague, Eugene Quirk, a psychiatric nurse for older people, called to Ms Treacy and four days later, the safeguarding case was closed because a plan had been put in place.

However, in December 2017 she received an email from HSE home help coordinator Concepta Bermingham advising her of the ongoing difficulties between Ms Treacy and Mr Scott over land and the resulting concerns for Ms Treacy’s welfare.

A decision was made to remove Mr Scott as the first responder on the personal pendant alarm worn by Ms Treacy and to replace him with Ms Donoghue.

On January 17, 2018, Ms Quinlan again carried out a joint visit to Ms Treacy’s home, asking her if she would consider seeking a court order directed towards ensuring her welfare. She visited alone on February 20, 2018, and found Ms Treacy to be “extremely upset” and asked her if she would like to move to Portumna, but she declined.

A week later, on February 26, she returned and again asked her about a court order to ensure her welfare.

She checked in by phone on March 16 and on March 21, visited her and noted that she was “very anxious”.

Five days later, she received an email with a further safeguarding referral form regarding Ms Treacy, prepared by her carers. She discussed those concerns with her and the following day, completed a notification document to gardaí, escalating the welfare concerns. “This was a formal step,” she explained to the court.

Ann Keaveney, a nurse at the day-care centre in Portumna, agreed that it was “a great source of joy” to Ms Treacy to go to the centre. She found her to have “a good sense of humour and turn of phrase”.

Sometimes she would collect her to bring her to the centre if the bus was not available and Ms Treacy would come out to the yard and walk to the car. “She was able to walk unaided but she would walk very slowly,” she said.

Dr Sabina Fahy, a consultant psychiatrist at St Brendan’s nursing unit in Ballinasloe, told the court Ms Treacy was referred to her in 2011 and again in 2012, diagnosed with recurrent depressive disorder caused by life events, including the loss of her two brothers and her physical health difficulties. She noted that Ms Treacy had a fear of dying.

She would see a deterioration in Ms Treacy whenever she was hit with another life event such as loneliness or the death of someone in her community.

However, on changing her medication and visits from the nurse, she would make a good response and was able to function at home, to make decisions about her life, go to town with a neighbour and to mass on Sundays.

She was also caring for 40 ewes before she got to the point where she was no longer able to, Dr Fahy said.

The trial continues.

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