Jail for man who stabbed mother repeatedly during argument

A man who stabbed his mother repeatedly in the back during an argument has been jailed for three years.

The blade of the knife used by Wayne Keogh became embedded in his mother's back during the attack and had to be surgically removed, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Monday.

Keogh (28) with an address in Knowth Court, Ballymun, Dublin pleaded guilty to one count of assault causing harm to his mother, Carol Keogh, at her home in Larkhill Road, Whitehall on January 28th this year.

Ms Keogh suffered four stab wounds to her back and neck which caused a punctured lung and a laceration to her liver, Garda Tanya Shinkins told Fiona Crawford BL, prosecuting.

Keogh, who has been in custody since the attack, has 102 previous convictions, including assault causing harm.

Sentencing him to three years' imprisonment, Judge Martin Nolan noted it was a "serious assault" that escalated from a verbal dispute to a stabbing attack. He took into account a number of factors, including a psychological report that was handed in to court.

The court heard that the night before the incident, Keogh had been sleeping on his mother’s couch. That morning, the two of them had a row over a pair of tracksuit bottoms, Garda Shinkins said.

Ms Keogh bent down to look for the bottoms and felt what she thought was several blows to her back, but which was in fact her son stabbing her.

The knife handle was broken during the assault and Ms Keogh underwent surgery in the Mater Hospital to remove the embedded blade. She remained in hospital for four days and has made a full recovery, the court heard. She did not wish to make a victim impact statement.

Keogh, who left the house immediately after the attack, was apprehended by gardaí­ in a nearby service station. He admitted to stabbing his mother and said he “lost it”.

Luigi Rea BL, defending, said the row between Keogh and his mother was in fact related to an incident stemming from his own childhood and his fears about his nephew walking to school alone that morning.

He handed in a psychological report which he said outlined a number of difficulties from Keogh’s childhood.

He said his client left school in first year. He is single and has a child from a previous relationship.