Jury instructed in case of woman accused of murdering husband
The jury in the trial of a woman accused of murdering her husband with a hammer has been instructed that the only verdicts open to them are guilty of murder, or guilty of manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.
The eight men and four women of the jury have begun their deliberations in the case of Anne Burke (aged 56), of Ballybrittas, Co Laois, who denies murdering her husband Pat Burke (aged 55), at the family home in August 2007.
Calling the jury's attention to what he said was his client's “unusual honesty”, counsel for the defence, Mr Patrick Gageby SC said: “You know the history of marital disharmony...wouldn't it have been the easiest thing in the world for her to say that he forced himself on her and she reached for the hammer?...or that he provoked her...but actually no excuse was offered in this case.”
Mr Gageby said it "would not be right" if the jury acquit Mrs Burke, or find her guilty of murder, as he said the “overwhelming” evidence was that it was manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.
Over the past two days, the Central Criminal Court has heard harrowing evidence of the 32-year marriage of Anne and Pat Burke which was wrought with violent rows, fuelled by regular and excessive drinking.
Mrs Burke told gardaí that her husband assaulted her on their wedding night in 1975 and the beatings continued throughout their marriage.
They had four children together, and she recalled how once when she was pregnant with her son, Mr Burke kicked her in the stomach.
She admits hitting her husband over the head while he slept, with a hammer that had been in their bedroom on the afternoon of Sunday, August 19, 2007.
She told gardaí it was like a haze and felt it was somebody else doing it and thought that she remembered hitting him twice on the side of the head.
Mr Burke sustained 23 blows to the head in all.
The jury also heard evidence from two psychiatrists who interviewed Mrs Burke in the aftermath of the killing.
They agreed that she was suffering from a mental disorder which significantly diminished her responsibility for the killing.
In his closing speeches to the jury today, counsel for the prosecution Mr Paddy McCarthy said “it is not open to you to bring in a verdict of not guilty, in my submission”.
He said it was clearly an unlawful killing and that it would be murder, unless the jury is satisfied that Mrs Burke was suffering from a mental disorder at the time.
The jury also requested to see a photograph of Pat Burke, and they were given the picture used on his memorial card for their deliberations.
