Man who admits killing mother tells jury of being 'groomed' into life of drugs and violence

Alison O'Riordan

An amateur kickboxer who admits killing but denies murdering his mother has taken the stand at his own trial, telling the jury of being "groomed" into a life of drugs and violence by his abusive mother.

"In my whole life of being attacked and abused I had never defended myself, just waited for it to be over," Luke Donnelly told the Central Criminal Court on Thursday evening.

The accused told his trial that he was in fear for his life and "lost all control" when he "stomped" on his 62-year-old mother's head after she hit and threatened to kill him.

The accused also agreed with prosecution counsel that he had used "deplorable violence" to end his mother's life and had "loaded up" on a cocktail of drugs in the hours before her killing.

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

Taking the stand on Thursday, Mr Donnelly told his defence counsel, Conall MacCarthy SC, that he was three years old when his father left and life "took a turn", with a lot of violence and drugs "brought into" the home.

The accused said his mother had hit his older siblings and that some of them were mentally as well as physically abused.

Mr Donnelly said the violence from his mother was directed towards him and his younger sister when they moved to Delvin in Co Westmeath with his mother and her new husband, who he told the court later killed himself. He said Ms Henry's mental health deteriorated when her new husband died and she became very angry, violent and depressed. He said Ms Henry would smash things, drink and take a lot of prescription tablets.

He said when his mother began a relationship with a drug dealer, he was put "out on the street" at 14 years old as he wouldn't move to Portugal with "a drug trafficker".

The accused said he later moved to Liverpool with his mother and her partner at 16 years old, when he was "groomed" into a lifestyle he didn't want. He said he had to sell drugs, extort money from people and was forced into being violent.

Asked by Mr MacCarthy about evidence he was "representing" himself as 'Jesus Christ', the accused said voices told him he was God and that God had chosen him from the beginning of time.

Mr Donnelly recalled going to Ibiza for a week, not sleeping or eating, and just taking drugs. "I wasn't right when I came back," he said.

The accused said that when his mother drank heavily, she would spend time abusing his siblings and calling them "scum". "If she was against them, I had to be against them, or I would be physically abused," he said.

He said his mother had run at him with a "massive butcher's knife" in 2020 and tried to stab him. "In my whole life of being attacked and abused, I had never defended myself, just waited for it to be over".

The accused said he never held any anger or animosity towards his mother, no matter what she did or how many times she tried to kill him, spit on him or knock him unconscious.

The jury has heard evidence that in the early hours of May 23rd, the accused contacted his former partner, Stacey Campbell, telling her he was coming over to her Drogheda address. The trial has heard that Mr Donnelly tried to push his way in, but his mother managed to get him out and gardaí were called.

CCTV footage showed that Mr Donnelly left the house and got a bus to Dundalk, where he made his way to his mother's apartment on Bridge Street, where he had been living from time to time. The jury heard that Ms Henry returned to her apartment an hour later, around 9.45am on May 23rd, but was "never seen alive again".

Ms Campbell has told the trial that the accused “wasn’t in a right state of mind for a long, long time” and was "saying he was Jesus".

Asked by counsel about May 23rd, 2023, Mr Donnelly said he went back to his mother's apartment and went to bed after he was refused entry into his former partner's home. "I told them 'I'm Jesus Christ, I'm the son of God....' my mother said if you are Jesus Christ, leave".

When his mother arrived back at her apartment later that day, Mr Donnelly said he heard a lot of banging coming from the kitchen. He said a panic came over him, and knew it was time to go, so he started to pack up his belongings.

He said Ms Henry called him a "useless c**t, going around telling people you are Jesus Christ". When Ms Henry came into the bedroom and asked for his key back, the accused told her he was the son of God and couldn't take the controlling abuse anymore.

He said his mother screamed in his face that she would kill him if he left. "I said I'm the son of God, you can't kill me," he told the jury.

The accused said he closed his eyes and "waited for it to be over" as she lunged at him. "I didn't know whether it was punches or a weapon, but I could feel my head and arms being hit".

At that moment, Mr Donnelly said he was in fear for his life, snapped and threw a left punch, which connected with Ms Henry and spun her around. "I lost all control and proceeded to stomp; it all happened in a moment," said the accused, adding that he believed she was going to kill him. He said he had stomped on her a few times; "it wasn't many times".

In cross-examination, Garret Baker SC, prosecuting, asked Mr Donnelly: "Can we agree you ended your mother's life by using deplorable violence against her?"

The accused agreed but said he was defending himself, as he was in fear for his life.

Mr Donnelly agreed his mother was unarmed but said he hadn't known this at the time, as she "usually" had a knife in her hand.

"Why did you close your eyes if you had a concern that she had a weapon?" asked Mr Baker. The accused said his first reaction from being abused as a child was to close his eyes and cover up.

The lawyer said it was a "bit of a gamble" to have closed his eyes if he thought his mother might have had a knife in her hand. The accused said he was very confused at the time.

Mr Donnelly agreed that before he left the apartment at 3.30pm, he stepped over his mother's body and left a bloody footprint on it.

The accused said he had taken ketamine, cocaine, cannabis, ecstasy and a bottle of nitrous oxide on the night of May 22nd and into the morning of May 23rd. He agreed he had "loaded up" on a cocktail of drugs.

The lawyer put it to the accused that he had ended his mother's life, to which Mr Donnelly replied, "after she threatened me and I snapped in self-defence".

Told by counsel that his mother had got a safety order against him in 2020, the accused said he hadn't had a chance to defend himself in court.

"A 62-year-old unarmed grandmother threatens you, and you are in fear of your life?" asked counsel.

"You have to understand it was the person who abused me mentally and physically since I was a child," Mr Donnelly replied.

The barrister asked the accused whether Ms Henry was "some kind of lethal killing machine". He said she was very good and capable of doing unimaginable things.

Asked whether he wanted to exercise revenge, the accused said he didn't and never held any anger towards his mother. Mr Donnelly said he loved his mother unconditionally, no matter what she did to him.

"Unconditional love in the air as you fractured her skull?" pressed counsel. The accused said he had become very angry at that moment and believed he was going to be killed.

Asked how Ms Henry could have been a threat to him at any stage after he punched her, the accused said she would have "killed him in a heartbeat".

The accused told the court that he was a qualified fitness instructor and had fought in amateur kickboxing fights.

A photograph posted by the accused a couple of weeks before his mother's death was shown to the jury. Mr Baker put it to the accused that in the photo he looked physically fit, had pumped biceps and "in the words of the younger generation" was "ripped" and had a six pack. The accused said he physically went downhill after this photograph was taken.

He denied "pummelling" his mother "into the next life" and said he had lost control and snapped.

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

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can freephone the Samaritans 24 hours a day for confidential support at  116 123 or email  jo@samaritans.org. 

Alternatively, the contact information for a range of mental health supports is available at   mentalhealthireland.ie/get-support. 

In the case of an emergency, or if you or someone you know is at risk of suicide or self-harm, dial 999/112.