Man accused of murdering mother 'absolutely idolised her', sister tells court

Alison O'Riordan

The sister of a man who admits killing but denies murdering their mother has told a jury that she was "absolutely terrified" of the deceased growing up, as she "physically, verbally and emotionally" abused her and her siblings on a daily basis.

Kathleen Donnelly also told the Central Criminal Court on Tuesday that the accused, Luke Donnelly, always went back to their mother, Catherine Henry, no matter how bad she treated him and that he "absolutely idolised" her.

The accused's father, Gerry Donnelly, who had once been married to the deceased, said Ms Henry had stabbed him in the arm with a steak knife during an argument around 1999 and that she had also pushed him down the stairs in a separate incident.

Luke Donnelly (29), of no fixed abode, has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Catherine Henry (62) at her apartment on Bridge Street in Dundalk, Co Louth on a date unknown between May 23rd and 24th, 2023.

Kathleen Donnelly (37) told Garret Baker SC, prosecuting, that Luke texted her on May 23rd, 2023, saying he was 'Jesus Christ' and the chosen one.

The witness said she had cancer some years before this and Luke told her during their conversation that day that he had cured her cancer and God had given him "this healing power".

Ms Donnelly told the jury she got the fright of her life when she picked Luke up in Blanchardstown that night. "He was like a corpse, he was so thin and didn't look like him at all," she said.

The witness said her brother was whispering to himself about Jesus in the car and saying "weird stuff about Jesus and God". "He said he hadn't eaten or slept in three weeks and God said he was only allowed one meal a day and two hours sleep a night...he said he was only allowed cold showers" she continued.

When they went for a walk on May 24th, Ms Donnelly recalled Luke talking about the devil, God and the bible. The witness asked Luke had he been talking to their mother and the accused said he hadn't seen her in a few weeks.

She said there were concerns that evening about where their mother was and at 8pm her other brother Jonathan rang her to tell her their mother was dead.

Ms Donnelly said she told Luke the "news" in the back garden and that he had fallen back, was shocked and was upset. When the witness told her brother that someone had said he [the accused] might have something to do with, Luke said he hadn't seen their mother in weeks.

The witness said she drove her brother to psychiatric hospital St Loman's in Mullingar on the evening of May 24th and that Luke had removed his shoes, saying he had to be closer to God and feel nature on his feet.

Earlier, the witness said that Luke had gone to Ibiza in August 2022 and came back a different person. She said he hadn't slept for a week and had done "so many drugs".

Ms Donnelly said Luke went missing for a few days in November 2023 and she thought he was going to commit suicide as he had attempted this many times before.

The witness said she and most of her siblings didn't speak to their mother Catherine and that Luke hadn't either for a time. However, she said no matter how bad her mother treated Luke he always went back to her.

In cross-examination, Ms Donnelly agreed with Conall MacCarthy SC, defending, that Luke had thrown away his phone and laptop in November 2022 and that his reasoning was because he was Jesus Christ.

The witness said Luke absolutely idolised their mother Catherine and always went back to her no matter how she treated him.

Asked what Ms Henry was like, Ms Donnelly said she was "absolutely terrified" of her mother growing up and she had physically, verbally and emotionally abused her and her siblings on a daily basis. "I witnessed her throwing my dad down the stairs, he wouldn't hurt a fly and she gave him an awful life".

The witness also recalled a separate incident of her mother "diving" on top of Luke in a bar in Malta and repeatedly punching him. "I never stood up to her, I was terrified of her and everyone was terrified of her growing up".

The accused's older brother, Jonathan Donnelly, said he hadn't had meaningful contact with his mother Ms Henry for 15 years prior to her death.

Under cross-examination, Mr Donnelly agreed he had told gardai in a statement that Ms Henry wasn't a very nice person to be around and was "unpredictable" at times.

The next witness, Gerry Donnelly, told Mr Baker that he was the ex-husband of Ms Henry and they had seven children together. Mr Donnelly said they had married in 1979, separated in 2000 and later got a divorce.

Mr Donnelly said he had observed personality changes in his son Luke in the year prior to his ex-wife's death and didn't know what drugs he had been taking.

Mr Donnelly told Mr MacCarthy, defending, that his family had their "ups and downs" prior to the couple's separation in 1999 and that the "difficult times" were such that he left the family home around this time.

Asked whether he recalled an incident in the kitchen of their home around 1999/2000, Mr Donnelly said there was an argument between himself and Ms Henry, when she pulled out a steak knife and stabbed him in the arm. He said it was frightening and that he had grabbed the knife off her as he "didn't know what way the end was going to be".

The witness recalled another incident when Ms Henry had pushed him down the stairs. He said he was in shock as it had happened so quickly.

Mr Donnelly said Ms Henry was very strict with their children and maybe "over strict". He said if there was a departure from the rules Ms Henry would shout, roar and grab the children. He said the deceased had mood swings and "be grand one day and the next so angry and so upset about things".

In re-examination, the witness agreed with Mr Baker that these incidents had occurred decades ago and before Ms Henry had cancer.

The trial continues tomorrow before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of seven men and five women.