'Psychotic cowardly killer' with 152 previous convictions jailed for nine years

Alison O'Riordan

A "psychotic cowardly killer" with 152 previous convictions who said he was acting in self-defence when he stabbed his aunt's partner 16 times in a "frenzied knife" attack has been jailed for nine years.

Sentencing alcoholic Ryan Kearney at the Central Criminal Court on Thursday, Mr Justice Paul Burns said the "extreme and sustained violence" used by the defendant was "truly shocking" and that the deceased's ability to defend himself had been impaired due to his level of intoxication.

The judge went on to say that there had been a sustained use of a knife and no evidence was given as to why Kearney couldn't have retreated, if, as the defendant had said, Mr Jackson "kept coming at him".

Ryan Kearney was found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter by a jury earlier this month. The 12 jurors unanimously rejected the prosecution case that Kearney was guilty of murder and that he had intentionally stabbed cancer survivor Jeffrey Jackson from "almost top to toe", intending to kill or cause serious injury.

Kearney (39), with an address at Loughnamona Drive, Leixlip, Co Kildare, had pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Jackson (50) at The Lamps, School Street, Kilcock, Co Kildare on February 8th, 2024.

Kearney has 152 previous convictions, which include trespassing, theft, possession of drugs for sale and supply, criminal damage and endangerment.

The defendant's most serious previous conviction was for possession of drugs for sale and supply in 2011, for which he received a 10-year prison sentence, three of which was suspended.

In one of five victim impact statements read to the court earlier this week, the older brother of Mr Jackson, Roy Jackson, said
Kearney would "forever be known as the person who killed" his brother, and that "every time" his cell door slams, "it may be a reminder of him taking Jeffrey's life".

Mr Jackson told the Central Criminal Court that seeing Kearney "with a smug look on his face" when the verdict was returned showed he had "no respect" and "no remorse" for their family.

He added: "Death is final, jail is not. Ryan Kearney, you don't deserve the privilege of being a free man".

In a second victim impact statement, Mr Jackson's mother, Grace Jackson, said she was consumed "by the horrific manner" by which her son was killed. "I can feel his fear and pain as he struggled to survive, not able to breathe, he'd been stabbed twice in the back, 16 stab wounds sustained, 45 bruises in total, trying to defend himself from a psychotic cowardly killer".

It was the defence contention that their client had not been the aggressor and had done no more than he believed necessary in the circumstances to defend himself.

Michael Bowman SC, defending, had told the jury in his closing address that his client was acting in self-defence when he fatally stabbed Mr Jackson, who counsel submitted was prone to "rage and violence" and who Kearney was "absolutely right" to call "a complete lunatic". He said his client was an alcoholic, but whatever difficulties he had, he was not given to behaving in a manner involving violence and knives.

Before delivering today's sentence, Mr Justice Burns said Kearney had arrived uninvited to Breda Kearney's apartment, who was the defendant's aunt through marriage. He said Mr Jackson was annoyed by Kearney's arrival at the apartment and consuming their vodka.

The judge said the level of violence was "extreme" with 16 knife wounds to the deceased as well as some blunt force injuries. He said this indicated a sustained use of a knife.

Mr Justice Burns pointed out that Brendan Grehan SC, with Edward Doocey BL, prosecuting, had submitted that the Director of Public Prosecution's (DPP) view was that the offending attracted a headline sentence of between 10 and 15 years.

Whereas, the judge said the defence had submitted the headline sentence was at the bottom of that range.

The judge said the defence of self-defence went to the jury as a full and partial defence. He said the partial defence of provocation had also gone to the panel.

The defence had asked for an outright acquittal or a verdict of manslaughter on the basis of self-defence or the partial defence of provocation, which can reduce an intentional killing from murder to manslaughter.

Mr Justice Burns said the defence had submitted at this week's sentence hearing that the propensity of the evidence supported the partial defence of self-defence rather than provocation.

The judge said the court agreed with this, and he would approach sentencing with self-defence using excessive force.

The judge said Breda Kearney had to contact emergency services as the defendant had not done so. He said "a limited degree of a clean-up" had been attempted by Kearney before gardaí arrived, and the defendant also misled officers with "concocted events".

He set the headline sentence at 12 years and six months in prison.

In mitigation, Mr Justice Burns noted the defendant had offered a plea of manslaughter before the trial, which had not been accepted by the DPP. He said whilst Kearney had committed serious offences in the past, his history of offending was not a violent one.

He said the defendant had a long history of alcohol dependency and abuse and had also expressed remorse in a short letter to the court.

Taking mitigation into account and to assist rehabilitation, Kearney was sentenced to 10 years in prison with the final year suspended for a period of three years. It was backdated to when he went into custody on February 8th, 2024.

Sentence hearing

At Monday's sentence hearing, Detective Inspector Paul Reilly from Naas Garda Station detailed the background to the event, telling Mr Grehan, prosecuting, that garda were called to The Lamps on February 8th.

Mr Jackson was lying on a couch after an altercation in the apartment, which lasted approximately ten minutes.

Det Insp Reilly said the "frenzied knife" incident had happened in a "very brief window", when the deceased's partner, Breda Kearney, had left her apartment to purchase alcohol in the local supermarket.

Mr Jackson, the Insp said, had suffered 17 knife wounds, of which 16 were stab wounds and one incised wound to various parts of his body. Two wounds had entered part of the deceased's heart, which led to his death.

The witness said Kearney had initially given a false account to gardaí, where he said balaclava-clad men had forcibly entered the apartment. Det Insp Reilly said shortly afterwards the defendant stated he had acted in self-defence and that Mr Jackson had attacked him after a dispute about consuming alcohol in the apartment.

The officer agreed with Mr Justice Burns that the deceased had a very high amount of alcohol in his system and that it was the pathologist's opinion it would have had an effect on his ability to defend himself.

Under cross-examination, Det Insp Reilly agreed with Mr Bowman, defending, that his client and the deceased had both struggled with alcohol.

The witness also agreed with Mr Bowman that a row between the men had taken place because of access to a phone or the drinking of vodka.

In a letter of apology to the victim's family, Kearney said he was "so sorry" for the Jackson's loss. "There is nothing I can say to take away the pain. I never wanted to hurt anyone," said the defendant, adding that his actions had "led to something" that should never have happened.

Undoubtedly, Mr Bowman said, the incident had the genesis and fell against the background of alcohol.

Evidence from trial

Mr Jackson's partner, Breda Kearney, has given evidence that when she returned home after a brief trip to the shop, she was met by her bloodied nephew, Ryan Kearney, who told her he had stabbed her partner in the neck and thought he was dead.

In his garda interviews, Kearney said that he took a knife off his aunt's enraged partner after a scuffle and gave him "a few jabs with it", telling detectives that he had no intention to kill and was in fear for his life.

The trial heard that Kearney had washed the knife and told gardaí he was leaving the apartment when he encountered his aunt.

"It was either going to be me sitting here today or him sitting here today," the defendant told officers.

State pathologist Dr Sally Anne Collis gave evidence that Mr Jackson was more than eight times over the legal drink driving limit and died after sustaining 16 separate knife injuries.

The cause of death was two fatal wounds to the chest, one of which was 17cm in depth from a 12cm knife blade.

Evidence was given that when Kearney was charged with the murder of Mr Jackson on February 10th, he replied: "I stabbed Jeffrey but did not murder him, he was my friend, that's it".

Emma Farrell had told the trial that her husband, Mr Jackson, was an alcoholic who was physically abusive when drunk and that she had lived "in a constant state of fear" of being killed by him.

Ms Farrell said her husband's violence could "erupt spontaneously without any provocation" on her part, and the deceased was "the type of guy who had no fear".

Gardaí told Kearney in his interviews that his account of stabbing Mr Jackson to death in self-defence did not make sense and put it to him that he had stabbed the deceased in the back, washed the knife and cleaned his hands.