Sentence in Laytown case reduced

THE COURT of Criminal Appeal has reduced from eight years to six the jail sentence imposed on mother of two Kelly Noble for the fatal stabbing of another young mother.

Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns said yesterday the appeal court was satisfied the trial judge had erred in principle in just one respect - by holding that the manslaughter of Emma McLoughlin was at the higher end of the scale of sentences imposed on those guilty of manslaughter and required a 10-year sentence.

The appeal court believed this particular offence was somewhere in the middle of the scale, he said. He also noted Noble was extremely remorseful.

Noble (22), Seaview, Laytown, Co Meath, was found not guilty in March 2007 of the murder of Emma McLoughlin (19), whom she stabbed once in the chest outside a supermarket in Laytown, Co Meath, on June 2nd, 2006. She was convicted of manslaughter, which she had admitted.

Mr Justice Barry White sentenced Noble to 10 years, with the final two years suspended. Noble appealed the severity of that sentence to the appeal court.

Mr Justice Kearns, presiding and sitting with Mr Justice Daniel Herbert and Mr Justice John Hedigan, said this was a "dreadful tragedy" where a young mother had died and the court wished to express its deep sympathy to Ms McLoughlin's family and to her two children who had been deprived of their mother's love.

The trial judge, Mr Justice Barry White, had correctly treated Noble as having pleaded guilty to manslaughter and also took into account a wealth of material in relation to her, including probation report and psychiatric reports, Mr Justice Kearns said.

There was no doubt there was "bad blood" between Noble and Ms McLoughlin and that, earlier on the day of the killing, Noble had been verbally abused and physically assaulted by Ms McLoughlin in the supermarket. Ms McLoughlin was put out of the store and the matter could have ended there but for two unfortunate circumstances - that Ms McLoughlin did not go home and that Noble rang a friend and asked her to bring a knife to the shop.

Tragically, the judge said, the knife was brought to Noble. Even then, what happened next might have been avoided - Noble had turned away but Ms McLoughlin came after her and there was a further altercation during which the stab wound was inflicted.

These circumstances brought the offence into the middle range of manslaughter, the court believed. Mr Justice Kearns referred to reports on Noble, which outlined her very difficult home circumstances, the fact her mother was serving a sentence for the killing of her father and a history of violence between her parents during her earlier years.

The reports also referred to a four-year history of heroin abuse but showed, he noted, that Noble had "meaningfully engaged" and made serious efforts to grapple with those difficulties. This was hardly surprising as she had two young children in foster care.

Mr Justice Kearns noted prison reports that Noble was studying fabric and fashion and was very helpful to other inmates.