Dubliner gets three years for stabbing

A Dublin man who is already serving a life sentence for stabbing his ex-girlfriend to death was sentenced to three years today for seriously injuring her mother on the same date.

Last November, a jury in the Central Criminal Court convicted Declan Burke (aged 29), with a last address on the South Circular Road, Dublin 8, of the murder of Ms Jennifer Wilkinson (aged 24) at her home in the Rise, Boden Park, Ballyboden, Dublin on December 13, 2000 and of assault causing serious harm to her mother, Mrs Mary Wilkinson, (aged 57) on the same date.

Burke’s relationship with Jennifer Wilkinson had broken down some months before the attack. They had a baby daughter together. The child was asleep upstairs in the house when her father stabbed her mother and grandmother.

Declan Burke accepted he was responsible for the stabbings, but he fought the two charges on the basis that he did not intend to kill or cause serious injury and had temporarily lost control of his mind due to past systematic sexual and physical abuse at the hands of his father, a convicted child abuser.

Today, Mr Justice Barry White again told Burke that he regretted that he had no discretion but had had to impose a mandatory life sentence for the murder of Jennifer Wilkinson.

He said he was "acutely conscious" and "truly distressed" by what Burke had suffered at the hands of his father.

He had no doubt that Burke suffered "irreparable damage" and had been "scarred for life" by what his father had done to him. He was equally of no doubt that the "awful events" of December 13, 2000 would remain with Burke for life.

The judge said he believed the stabbing of Mrs Maura Wilkinson formed part of "a single transaction" on the night.

There was no doubt that any sentence he imposed would not in any way alleviate the suffering of Mrs Wilkinson and her family, he said.

He said that aside from his distress at Burke’s history, he was also "disturbed" by the content of the probation report, which noted "that there will be access to but a limited psychiatric service" for Burke.

Mr Justice White said that although he had no powers in the matter, he would "direct" or "recommend" that as far as possible, all psychiatric services be available to Burke in the future.

Repeating his contention that no sentence he imposed would alleviate "in any manner" the suffering of the Wilkinson family and Mrs Wilkinson in particular, the judge continued: "I am sure that Mrs Wilkinson will not feel that I have let her down in any way by the sentence I impose."

He sentenced Declan Burke to three years to run concurrent with his life sentence. He also backdated the sentence to December 14, 2000, when Burke was first taken into custody.

Leave to appeal sought by Burke’s counsel Mr Patrick MacEntee SC, on the basis that having regard to all the psychiatric and other evidence in the case the jury verdict was against the weight of the evidence, was refused.

By a majority verdict last November, a jury rejected Burke’s defence that he was either temporarily insane at the time of the stabbings or his alternative defence that he lacked the capacity to form a rational intent to kill or cause serious injury.

During a six-day trial, Burke claimed that his past history of years of sexual abuse at the hands of his father, a convicted abuser, had rendered him unable to control his anger and had left him with the ability to have complete memory blackouts of traumatic events.

He asked for a verdict of either manslaughter or guilty but insane. But the jury chose to reject those defences and to accept the prosecution case.

The jury had heard that Burke brought a knife to the scene of the stabbings and that he waited for around five hours outside Jennifer Wilkinson's home in Boden Park before forcing his way in the door after her as she arrived home.

Within moments, he stabbed her and then stabbed her mother, who was awoken by the disturbance and had come out some way down the stairs.

Jennifer Wilkinson died some time after being stabbed three times. Mrs Maura Wilkinson survived two stab wounds, one a serious chest wound.

According to her evidence, immediately after the stabbbings, Burke left the house with the words, "That’s an end to it now".