A 64-yr-old man who threw boiling water over his wife while she slept and then struck her repeatedly with a claw hammer at their Cork city home has been sentenced to eight years in prison.
At Cork Circuit Criminal Court, Judge Dermot Sheehan told Noel Twomey, of Carbery Grove in Knocknaheeny, Cork city, that his actions towards his wife, Jackie, had affected her not only physically but had also resulted in “significant psychological trauma”, reports RTE.
After the hearing, Ms Twomey said she was satisfied with the sentence of nine years, with the final year suspended, although she believed it should have been longer.
“If he had done the hammer first, I would not have survived. He did the water first – that woke me up screaming like a banshee, and that’s how I was able to get up. If he done the hammer first, one blow I could have been dead,” she said, reports RTE.
The court previously heard that Twomey was detained by gardaà close to his home in the early hours of 15 January 2024, where he was found “soaked in blood and in possession of a blood stained hammer in a plastic bag”.
Later that year, he admitted guilt to two charges of serious assault causing harm to his wife Jackie and one charge of producing a claw hammer at the family residence, reports RTE.
In her victim impact statement, the 59-year-old mother of three described his actions as “beyond cruel and evil” and said they had permanently altered her life.
“He poured the boiling water on me and hit me a number of times over the head with the hammer. He didn’t seem to care about the damage he was doing to me”, she said, reports RTE.
“I thought I was going to die”, reports RTE.
The court was informed that the assault left Ms Twomey with a dent to her head, a scar measuring 3.5mm, and second-degree burns covering 11% of her body, and that it was “down to happenstance that she didn’t suffer serious cranial injuries”.
Sentencing had been postponed several times over the past two years as the defence sought to obtain a psychiatric assessment of Twomey before the court imposed sentence, reports RTE.
Defence Senior Counsel Seamus Roche told Judge Dermot Sheehan that they had once again failed to secure a psychiatric report and had reached a stalemate in the matter.
He acknowledged that Twomey’s wife Jackie was keen for the proceedings to move forward, reports RTE.
Mr Roche said the only documentation available was a brief medical report indicating that Twomey suffered from depression, had a history of psychosis following seizures and autism.
He urged the court to consider Twomey’s conduct on the night in question, reports RTE.
“It had not been seen before, it was out of character, this must inform the court as to his mental wellbeing, these are not the actions of a rational man,” Mr Roche said, reports RTE.
Mr Roche stated that Twomey’s solicitor, Shane Collins Daly, had multiple dealings with him and had advised that he is “a man under some psychological pressure”.
“He is now being confined to his own cell and cannot mix with others because of his behaviour and mentality, which should be addressed but isn’t being,” Mr Roche told Judge Sheehan, reports RTE.
Mr Roche said his client wished to express remorse to his wife.
In a letter written to her, Twomey said the incident was out of character, reports RTE.
“I have been in jail for over a year and a half and it is scary. I have had a lot of time to reflect. I am deeply remorseful and want to apologise to my wife again,” Twomey wrote, reports RTE.
Judge Sheehan said Ms Twomey had no chance to defend herself as she had been woken from sleep. She spent six days in hospital, sustained serious injuries and continues to suffer significant psychological trauma.
He stated that a headline sentence of 12 years was warranted given the degree of planning involved, including the boiling kettle and the weapon, reports RTE.
He added that an aggravating factor was that the attack took place in her own home, where she was entitled to feel secure.
However, there were mitigating factors, including Twomey’s full admissions to gardaà and his guilty pleas, reports RTE.
Judge Sheehan imposed a nine-year prison term, suspending the final 12 months on condition that he maintain the peace and be of good behaviour.
He is also prohibited from having any direct or indirect contact with his wife for 12 years, reports RTE.
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