Barbie Kardashian — Judge and defence barrister questioned how to plan for her future
Kardashian was convicted by a jury at Limerick's Circuit Criminal court last May of seven counts of threatening to kill or cause serious harm to her mother on dates in 2020. File photo
The DPP v Barbie Kardashian was, Judge Tom O’Donnell said, “one of the most complex cases” he has dealt with in his career on the benches of the District and Circuit Court in Limerick.
He jailed Kardashian, of no fixed abode, for five-and-a-half years with the final 12 months suspended, and backdated the sentence to May 9, last year.
Kardashian (21) was convicted by a jury last May of seven counts of threatening to kill or cause serious harm to her mother on dates in 2020. She was found not guilty of four additional charges of threatening to kill or cause serious harm to one of her social care workers.
The court heard the defendant was born a male named Gabrielle Alejandro Gentile, and that she later changed her name by deed poll to Barbie Kardashian. In 2020, Kardashian was granted a gender recognition certificate by the Department of Social Protection, in recognition of her identifying as female.
The court heard Kardashian is currently on a waiting list to be assessed for “appropriate medical treatment” in relation to her gender.
Judge O’Donnell noted the defendant is "unrepentant” about wanting to kill her mother. The evidence in Kardashian’s trial over four days at Limerick Circuit criminal court last year was shocking.
Kardashian had planned to travel to her mother’s house, overpower her, and then rape and torture her with a screwdriver and knife and boiling water.
Judge O’Donnell said Kardashian set out the plan in “chilling” detail — Kardashian had planned to wait in the house until she had satisfied herself her mother had “bled out” and no longer had a pulse.
The judge had requested pre-sentencing psychiatric and probation reports on Kardashian’s “complex” background, from childhood through to adulthood, which he said had made for “chilling and disturbing” reading.
Owing to difficulties at her home, Kardashian was taken into foster care at a young age. At the age of 12, Kardashian was placed into residential State care on foot of a “High Court special care order”.
She went to Coovagh House, Limerick, a residential facility for high-risk and vulnerable children, where her residency was extended beyond her 17th birthday as it appeared there was no place in the State to meet her complex needs.
Kardashian remained at Coovagh House until her residency was due to expire shortly before she turned 19. She was taken into custody at the women’s section of Limerick Prison in late September 2020 after appearing before Limerick District Court.
Kardashian had disclosed the threats against her mother to staff at Coovagh House, on dates between March and September 2020, including during a meeting to discuss a post-release care plan for her.
“From the evidence heard in this trial it is clear that the staff members at Coovagh House became very alarmed as the expiry date of the High Court care order approached in September 2020, and the nature and content of the threats issued by the accused became more sinister, more alarming and more vile,” judge O’Donnell said.
“Such was the concern of the staff, gardaí were contacted leading to the charges brought against the accused.”
Kardashian has been clinically diagnosed with several “personality disorders” which her defence barrister Mark Nicholas, SC, said make her crave being the centre of attention.
Mr Nicholas suggested Kardashian’s threats against her mother were “pure fantasy” and that she would get thrills and take “delight” in saying “shocking” things in order to get attention.
The court heard that psychiatric reports on Kardashian noted that she was displaying signs of PTSD and she had claimed she was sexually and physically abused when she was a minor.
Kardashian provided reams of pages of handwritten notes about how she is “driven” to carry out acts of violence due to this childhood “trauma”. Judge O’Donnell requested the probation services offer him advice “as to what the future might be for the accused”.
“Some of the major concerns of the report are that the accused is unrepentant about their threats to kill or cause serious harm to their mother. The (report) concludes the accused is at high risk of not just re-offending but also about committing serious crimes,” the judge continued.
“The major concern to this court is what is to happen to this accused once any sentence that might be imposed is concluded. The authors of the reports feel it is incumbent on the State services and associated medical services to get involved and try to come to some long-term solution.”
Acknowledging the court’s concerns, Kardashian’s barrister noted there should be some form of post-release care plan and “housing” supports put in place to meet his client’s needs.
“What to do? I’m not a doctor and I’m glad I’m not in the position you are, Judge, but this is a young person who has verbalized threats and wanting to go further (with it),” Mr Nicholas said.
"It is a complicated case and my client is a person who is young, confused, and who has several personality disorders,” Mr Nicholas added.
Five psychiatrists assessed Kardashian and her background file “and all five psychiatrists believe the case presents a real danger of carrying out her fantasies,” noted judge O’Donnell.
He said the probation report reflected Kardashian’s “narcissistic tendencies and desire to be the centre of attention”.
The report also noted that Kardashian “pleaded not guilty to the charges in order to discomfort some of the members of the staff at Coovagh House, and also to garner as much publicity as possible for herself”.
Judge O’Donnell said it was also concerning that Kardashian continues to “effectually want to torture their mother to death” and that she has shown “a complete lack of remorse”.
“There is no doubt that the reports of the probation officer show a continuing, high-level of venom towards her mother.” Kardashian’s 15 previous convictions, including for sexual assault carried out when she was 13 years of age, were of “enormous concern”.
“All were involving violence and underpin the fact the accused has a tendency towards violence, which is always a concern.”
Kardashian nodded in agreement and smiled as the judge also noted “mitigating factors” in his summing up, including that it appeared some staff at Coovagh House have “remained in contact” with Kardashian and that “they should be commended for this”.
“The court acknowledges the extremely complex background of the accused, who at this stage must be regarded as a vulnerable person.”
However, the judge also noted the evidence of gardaí that they had “grave concerns” about Kardashian’s movements after she serves out her sentence as she still had a “motivation to carry out the threats”.
Detective Garda Niall Fitzgerald, Roxboro Road Garda Station, said gardaí believe Kardashian continues to “pose a significant threat to those she has made threats towards, as well as to the wider public”
In summing up, Judge O’Donnell said: “One can only hope that the relevant State agencies take heed of the stark warning contained in the probation officer’s reports.”
He warned Kardashian that he would consider enacting the final 12 months he suspended from her sentence if she did not engage with the probation services for a period of two years after her release, or if she communicated or attempted to communicate with her parents.
Kardashian also agreed to reside at an address approved by the gardaí and probation services after her release, that she notify the probation services of any post-release intimate relationship and that she co-operate with a garda liaison officer.
The judge also ordered that the Irish Prison Service give the Probation Service six months advance notice of Kardashian’s release date.
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