Man pleads guilty to wife's manslaughter 'in final act of love'

A 62-year-old man has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of his wife “in a final act of love” to avoid private details of their life being aired at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Thomas Breen killed his wife when put his hands around her neck during a struggle after she came at him with a knife following an argument. He immediately rang gardaí and reported what had happened.

Breen of Willowvale, Ballybrack, pleaded guilty to the unlawful killing of 56-year-old Carmel Breen at their home on November 7, 2008. He has no previous convictions.

Inspector Eamonn O’Reilly agreed with Ms Deirdre Murphy SC, defending, that there was “an element of terrible bad luck” in that Breen believed he had strangled his wife but in fact the compression had created “interference with the nerves in her neck which caused her immediate death”.

He agreed he was an “honourable man” who was “bereft by the loss of his wife”.

Inspt O’Reilly told Mr Sean Gillane SC, prosecuting, that Breen told them his wife came home drunk in the afternoon and later went for him with a knife. A struggle ensued in which he grabbed her hands before “in desperation” he put his hands to her neck and she collapsed.

Breen told gardaí that his wife was a lovely person and that he would always love her.

One of the couple’s three sons, Trevor Breen, read a portion of his victim impact statement to the court.

“I have tried to stay impartial in this mess and concentrate on my own family and not take sides,” he read. He said he did not condone what his father had done and were times he could not speak to him.

“Should my father be accountable. Yes. Should he go to prison. I don’t know, the courts must decide that.”

He said he had been driving towards his parent's house that afternoon but did not end up visiting them. “If only I had gone in that day, this is what I will have to live with for the rest of my life,” he said.

He said his parents had been married for 40 years but drink had been a destructive force.

“They loved each other too much to part but loved to drink too much to give it up.”

He continued: “Our mother has been torn from us without a chance to say goodbye.”

Judge Patricia Ryan adjourned sentencing until later this month to allow her read reports handed into court.

Ms Murphy said there could have been a number of legal defences to this charge, such as self defence, accident or misadventure but Breen had chosen to take responsibility for his actions.

She said another reason he had chosen to plead guilty was to avoid having private details aired in court.

“They had a loving and complex relationship. His final act of love is to come in here and plead guilty to manslaughter,” she said. “He is serving his own sentence every day.”

She submitted that society did not need to have a man like Breen in prison. She said the circumstances of manslaughter varied widely resulting in penalties ranging from a fine to life imprisonment.

She asked the court to impose a sentence to mark the seriousness of the offence and the huge tragedy for the family but to suspend it entirely taking into account “the actions he has taken to preserve the memory of the wife he still loves”.

Inspt O’Reilly told Mr Sean Gillane SC, prosecuting, that members of the gardaí received a call at 7.30pm from a male reporting that he had had strangled and killed his wife.

Garda Martha Cleary attended at the house and found the door open. In the kitchen she found the partially naked body of the deceased Mrs Breen in a foetal position covered by a black jacket. Breen had remained on his mobile phone to gardaí until Gda Cleary arrived.

Inspt O’Reilly said Breen was in a distressed state and appeared to be in shock. He was sitting at the top of the stairs rocking backwards and forwards. He was given a glass of water but was shaking too much to hold it.

Breen told Gda Cleary that he and his wife had an argument and he had been trying to take a knife off her. He pointed out a black handled knife on the kitchen work top.

He said he had returned home from work at about 3pm and was surprised when his wife arrived home also.

He said she was drunk and “ranting and raving” before she started throwing around items such as plates and a microwave. Breen left the house at about 3.50pm and went back to work.

Breen said he returned home again between 5.30pm and 6pm. He said his wife woke up and came downstairs in her underwear telling him he would not be allowed stay in the house.

Inspt O’Reilly said Breen told them his wife went for him with a knife and a struggle ensued in which he grabbed her hands before “in desperation” he put his hand to her neck and she collapsed.

Breen was crying and moaning into his hand as he answered the questions. Gardaí attempted to calm him as he shook and pulled his hair saying: “Oh Jesus, she’s dead.”

He was later arrested and brought to Dun Laoghaire garda station where he was further interviewed.

He told gardaí when his wife came downstairs she threw a wine glass which landed on the sofa he was sitting on. He said he tried to push her away when she came at him with the knife but her face was glaring and her eyes wide.

Breen said he was focused on getting the knife out of his wife's hand and they struggled before he put his hand to her throat and started squeezing. He said the next thing he knew they were on the floor.

He said he did not know how long he squeezed her throat and at no point did he try and stab her.

At the time gardaí arrived there was no sign of a struggle but broken crockery had been swept up.

A medical examination noted there were remarkably few injuries on Mrs Breen’s body and no signs of asphyxiation. It outlined that collapse and death as a result of neck compression appeared to be rapid.