Murder trial hears children tell how father stabbed wife

THE TRIAL of a man accused of murdering his wife in Dublin in August 2007 has heard that he stabbed her in front of their three…

THE TRIAL of a man accused of murdering his wife in Dublin in August 2007 has heard that he stabbed her in front of their three children. The jury at the Central Criminal Court also heard that David Bourke (49) told gardaí he killed his wife because he thought she was going to leave him.

Mr Bourke has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Jean Gilbert (46) at their home at Laverna Dale, Castleknock, Co Dublin, on August 28th, 2007.

The court heard statements from two of the children who witnessed their mother’s alleged murder. One – then 10 years old – was in her pyjamas in the living-room with her siblings and mother. “My dad came in. He was talking aggressively like you do when you’re cross.”

The court heard that Mr Bourke asked his wife if she had taken their son’s phone. “Dad was standing in the doorway between the hall and the living-room. He stepped toward her [Ms Gilbert]. He had a knife. I saw the knife when my dad pushed my mum over. She was pushed over the chair on her back. She tried to grab my dad’s hand to stop him. He was trying to stab her.” The court heard that the girl saw her mother “going pale”. “My mum and dad were fighting. My mum had a boyfriend.” The court heard that Mr Bourke thought his wife had gone to her boyfriend the night before the alleged murder.

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“He said to me that she was gone to see her boyfriend. He was angry. He had an angry face on. My mum told dad she wanted a divorce. When he heard this for the first time he said that he wanted to jump off a cliff.

“Mum and dad were fighting a lot since mum told dad she wanted a divorce. Mum told dad she wanted a divorce two months ago. Before that they were fighting about little things. I don’t know why she wanted a divorce.”

A statement from the girl’s younger brother – seven years old at the time of the alleged murder – was also read out to the court.

The jury heard that Mr Bourke and Ms Gilbert were fighting over the boy’s phone. “Daddy thought my mum gave my phone to mum’s boyfriend. My dad had the knife. He was trying to kill my mum.

“Dad tried put it [the knife] into mummy’s tummy or head or something. I told dad not to kill my mum. He said, ‘Stop it.’ I can’t remember where the knife went.”

The court heard that Ms Gilbert “rolled on the ground and [Mr Bourke] tried to kill her.” “She said I didn’t do it, I didn’t give the phone to my boyfriend.

“Mum and dad were fighting about 10 times before and then the knife thing happened. It never happened before.”

Firefighter Maurice McCann told the court that he received a call on the morning of the alleged murder. The caller – an adult male – told him that he needed an ambulance for his wife. He said that he had attempted to kill her and had “stabbed her several times”.

Mr McCann said that he could hear children crying and suggested that they be taken to the neighbours.

The caller told Mr McCann that his wife seemed “to be still alive”. “That’s why somebody has to get here. I’ve three kids crying here. I’m not going to do anything else to her. She’s still alive. The kids are in no danger. I love those kids.” The court heard that Ms Gilbert died later that day in Connolly hospital, at 3.29pm.

Gda Padraig Brennan told the court that he arrived at the house at 10.30am and observed Ms Gilbert lying unconscious on the sitting-room floor. The three children were also in the room. Mr Bourke told Gda Brennan that he had “stabbed her three times”. “He pointed to a knife with a black handle on the mantelpiece and said that was the knife he had stabbed her with.” Gda Brennan said he then arrested Mr Bourke.

Mr Bourke told him that he’d “read the deceased’s diary and that she was going to leave him and that is why he stabbed her”.

The trial continues.