No child should have to see their dad covered in blood, partner of fatally stabbed man tells court

The partner of a father-of-six who was stabbed by his “life-long” friend has said that no child should ever have to see their dad lying in a garden covered in blood with emergency services “trying desperately” to save his life.

No child should have to see their dad covered in blood, partner of fatally stabbed man tells court

The partner of a father-of-six who was stabbed by his “life-long” friend has said that no child should ever have to see their dad lying in a garden covered in blood with emergency services “trying desperately” to save his life.

“I can still remember the children upset and the look on their faces. My world just fell apart watching the children hurt and knowing there is nothing you can do to make it better is soul destroying,” the deceased’s partner of 15 years told the Central Criminal Court today.

The testimony was heard as part of a victim impact statement read by a prosecution barrister on behalf of Aisling Kenny to the court during Paul Keating's sentence hearing.

Paul Keating, 50, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of the manslaughter of Mark Richardson, 49, by unanimous verdict on October 16.

The five-day trial heard evidence that Keating stabbed Mr Richardson in the chest at his family home. The single stab wound severed the main pulmonary artery causing very heavy bleeding.

Keating of Harmonstown Road, Artane, Dublin 5 had pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Mr Richardson on March 16, 2017. He died in hospital an hour after the stabbing at his home elsewhere on Harmonstown Road.

The defendant told gardai it was the last thing on his mind to injure his friend and he had just “lost it” when the deceased had him by his neck.

Aisling Kenny said today that her partner's death has had a huge impact on her life and her mental health has been dealt a massive blow.

“I was always a very outgoing and confident person, now I find myself spending much of my time at home due to anxiety and panic attacks,” she said.

Ms Kenny said she now dreads doing everyday things like the weekly shop and she has nightmares of what she witnessed on the night Mark was killed, leading to sleepless nights.

The mother-of-three said her children no longer have a male role model in their lives and her daughter will have no father to walk her down the aisle.

Mark and her were soul mates and had the deepest love and respect for each other, she said The court heard they were blessed with three beautiful children and Mark also had three other sons from a previous relationship.

“We raised the children together sharing the workload, where our children were concerned we always worked as a team.

Now I find myself in a position of loneliness. I wake every morning and give my all in the best interest of my children. It’s not easy, I can no longer turn to Mark for support.-

"This has made me feel extremely vulnerable as a mother who only wants to do the very best for her children,” said Ms Kenny.

She said her three children have not been the same since their dad’s death and are no longer “bright bubbly children" as a result of "having witnessed something that night that no child should ever see.”

"They saw the man they loved, cherished and adored lying in our garden covered in blood with garda cars, fire engines, an ambulance and paramedics trying desperately to save their dad's life," she said.

“The following morning they woke in my mother’s home and their first words were 'when is daddy coming home', that’s when myself and my brother had the most awful task of telling them that daddy had passed and had gone to heaven”, she continued.

It was right then and there that the reality of what happened hit home. My world just fell apart, watching young children hurt knowing there is nothing you can do to make it better is soul destroying.

Finally, Ms Kenny said Mark was a “bright, bubbly and beautiful person” who had a heart of gold and got on with everyone he met.

He was known as “the garden man” in Coolock due to his love of gardening and ran a community garden called “Change Community Garden” in Bunratty. He grew his own fruit and vegetables and taught his children as well as locals from the community to do the same, the court heard.

“I would often sit and watch them (Mark and the children) all with their shovels digging and planting or Mark running up and down with them in a wheelbarrow, all of them laughing their heads off having great fun,” she said.

The court heard that Mark cherished and adored his children. “He was a real hands-on dad and spent a lot of his time with the kids. My family is broken,” she concluded.

Sentence hearing

At today’s sentence hearing Detective Sergeant Basil Grimes, of Clontarf Garda Station, summarised the facts of the case.

Det Sgt Grimes told prosecuting counsel Michael Delaney SC that Mr Richardson was living with his long-term partner of 15 years, Aisling Kenny and their three children in March 2017. The children were between three and ten years of age at the time, the court heard.

Mr Richardson also had three adult children from another relationship and one of these, Dean Connors, witnessed the killing along with two other people.

Keating and Mr Richardson were “life-long friends” who grew up in the same area. Both men had been drinking together for a substantial portion of the day on March 16.

CCTV footage showed them going to an off-licence in Raheny before returning to Mr Richardson’s house on Harmonstown Road, where they drank for the evening.

Ms Kenny was in the house with the three children at the time but she did not start to drink until much later in the day.

Dean Connors and his partner Kim Valentine called to Mr Richardson's house with their son at 7.30pm that night and joined the group who were drinking in the dining room

Ms Valentine gave evidence in the trial that Keating became unhappy at a certain point and the atmosphere changed when Mr Richardson gave a can of beer to his son Dean, the court heard.

Det Sgt Grimes agreed with counsel that Mr Richardson engaged in a playful gesture with Keating by putting him in a headlock.

However, Keating became unhappy at this point and grabbed Mr Richardson by the crotch. The deceased asked Keating to leave the house but a scuffle developed between the two men.

Mr Richardson went into the back garden when the scuffle broke up and Ms Valentine persuaded him to come back into the house.

Keating then picked up a kitchen knife with a long blade from the draining board and stabbed his friend once in the upper chest. The defendant eventually dropped the knife into the sink.

Mr Richardson managed to make his way to the front of the house but then collapsed onto the porch. He was bleeding heavily from the wound to his chest and Keating, as well as others, attempted to assist him.

A 999 call was made and the ambulance arrived shortly afterwards. Keating remained at the scene as his friend was brought to Beaumont Hospital.

Mr Richardson was pronounced dead at 8.49pm that evening, an hour after the incident had occurred.

Chief State Pathologist, Professor Marie Cassidy, carried out a postmortem examination on Mr Richardson's body on March 17 and indicated that the only significant injury was a single stab wound to the right upper chest, which punctured a lung and severed the main pulmonary artery.

Keating has 22 previous convictions including drink driving as well as a minor assault offence and he has been in custody since March 18, 2017.

An early plea of manslaughter had been offered by Keating in advance of his trial but this was not accepted by the Director of Public Prosecutions. Det Sgt Grimes said Keating is not married and has no children.

'The best of friends'

Under cross-examination, Det Sgt Grimes agreed with Caroline Biggs SC, defending, that her client and Mr Richardson were the best of friends and there had been no difficulties between the men, who had great regard for each other.

The defence counsel said Keating had performed chest compressions on his friend’s chest as they waited for the ambulance to arrive.

The witness agreed with counsel that Dr Cassidy had accepted that the stab wound was positioned "a good bit away" from his heart.

Ms Biggs submitted to the court that her client profoundly regrets his actions on the night.

The barrister read aloud to the court a letter of apology written by Keating in which he said he feels “mentally and physically sick” about that night and it continues to haunt him.

I will never forgive myself for all of this and I will miss Mark around me in the future.

In her submissions, Ms Biggs said that her client had a good work ethic and has worked with his brothers in their roofing business.

“When he gets out of prison he hopes to work with his brothers as a roofer,” she said, adding that he is welcome to do this once he is absent of alcohol and drugs.

Ms Biggs asked the court to take into account that Keating’s misuse of alcohol began in his early twenties when he suffered an assault.

He had attempted to deal with his alcohol addiction but had relapsed and it had led to the breakup of two previous relationships.

Ms Biggs said that mitigating factors were her client’s early offer of a plea to manslaughter which had not been accepted, his remorse, his cooperation with gardai in their investigation as well as his lack of previous convictions.

In conclusion, Ms Biggs asked the judges to be as lenient as possible when sentencing her client.

Mr Justice Robert Eagar remanded Keating in custody until January 25, when he will be sentenced.

more courts articles

Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van
Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman
Coronation Street actor William Roache (91) given three months to settle tax debt Coronation Street actor William Roache (91) given three months to settle tax debt

More in this section

Government to introduce State contributory pension for carers Government to introduce State contributory pension for carers
Drug death in Cork Prison could be linked to nitazene opiate Drug death in Cork Prison could be linked to nitazene opiate
Four people hospitalised following suspected arson at West Dublin home  Four people hospitalised following suspected arson at West Dublin home 
War_map
Cookie Policy Privacy Policy Brand Safety FAQ Help Contact Us Terms and Conditions

© Examiner Echo Group Limited