A DUBLIN man has been sentenced to life in prison after he pleaded guilty to murdering his wife at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin.
Brian Vickers (43), Shelmalier Road, East Wall, Dublin, had previously pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of his wife Joan Vickers (43) in April 2009, at the family home on Shelmalier Road, East Wall.
Paul McDermott SC, prosecuting, told the court that some time between 12.30am and 4.30am on April 20th, Vickers had stabbed his wife to death in the front bedroom of their home while Ms Vickers’ father Michael O’Connor, who then lived in the house, slept.
The Vickers had four children together during their marriage and were described by prosecuting counsel as devoted parents.
Michael O’Higgins SC, defending, told the court that Vickers was a jealous man who became volatile when he drank.
“It is an unfortunate reality that has to be acknowledged that Brian Vickers was a very jealous husband and this jealousy was heightened with the consumption of alcohol.”
Mr O’Higgins said that Vickers had always provided for his family and had been a devoted parent to their four children.
On behalf of Vickers, he repeated the apology he had made on the day of the killing.
“It is a matter of huge regret to him that he killed his wife and he is very conscious of the havoc he has wreaked in the number of lives affected.”
Ms Vickers’ brother Steven O’Connor, read to the court a victim impact statement in which various members of her family told of the effect her death had had on them.
He said the family sincerely hoped that her children, particularly her youngest children Liam and Rebecca, who had been traumatised by the horrific manner of their mother’s death, would in time lead normal lives.
Mr O’Connor urged the court to “send a message to the cowards who victimise women to impose the maximum sentence”.
Richard Vickers, their eldest son, said the pain of the loss of their mother would be with him and his siblings forever.
“The pain of this loss is even stronger because in a way we have lost both parents.”
Catherine O’Connor, her sister, said her heart was broken following Ms Vickers death. “If it were a rip or a tear, it could be easily mended, but how do you mend a broken heart?”
Before handing down sentence, Mr Justice John Edwards asked the prosecuting counsel to clarify if it would have made a difference if Ms Vickers had received assistance immediately after the stabbing rather than being left by her husband for an hour before the Garda was contacted.
Mr McDermott said: “There was no evidence one way or another whether it would have made a difference, it simply wasn’t done.”
Mr Justice Edwards told Vickers he had no discretion in relation to sentencing.
“The law requires that it is a mandatory life sentence I must impose on you, to date from April 20th, 2009,” he said.
That night, Ms Vickers had gone to the pub with a couple of friends without her husband who decided to go to work at the Dublin docks, where he had been employed as a crane operator for a number of years.
Some time later her husband decided to go to the pub instead of work and when he arrived, Ms Vickers was not happy with his decision.
Det Garda John Moriarty of Store Street Garda station told Mr O’Higgins that Vickers had drunk eight or nine pints of beer and had taken four or five lines of cocaine during the course of the evening.
Vickers told Det Garda Moriarty, during Garda interviews, that he and his wife had been singing and dancing with each other during their time at the pub.
“I felt Joan was making gestures about me behind my back from the expression on my friends’ faces,” he said.
The Vickers returned to their home at about midnight at which point Ms Vickers retired to her bedroom.Vickers said he rubbed his wife’s back but she told him to leave her alone and not to touch her.
He told gardaí: “My mind started racing and I thought, another rejection, I just kept thinking of all the things she had done to me. I just lost it. I ran downstairs and grabbed a knife and I stabbed her in the neck.”
He telephoned his brother John Vickers and told him: “I’m after crossing the line with Joan.” His brother replied: “I knew you were going to do that.”
Vickers then drove to Donaghmede where he met his brother and asked him if he could get him a gun.
When John Vickers asked him why he wanted a gun, Vickers replied: “So I can blow my f***ing head off.” John Vickers then told his brother that he had two choices, “the police or the nuthouse”.
Brian Vickers and his brother then voluntarily went to Raheny Garda Station at about 6am that morning.