Brother of murdered woman calls for domestic violence register

The brother of a woman murdered by her former partner has joined calls for a domestic violence register with information about anyone who has a conviction for domestic violence.

Jason Poole said there needed to be an Irish equivalent of legislation in the United Kingdom called Clare’s Law (Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme). It was time for the Government to act, he told RTÉ Radio’s Today with Claire Byrne show.

Jennifer Poole was fatally stabbed in her Finglas apartment by her partner Gavin Murphy. He was sentenced in April 2022 to the mandatory term of life imprisonment.

Mr Poole said had the legislation been in place, he or his sister could have walked into a Garda station to get information on the previous conviction of Murphy.

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Murphy had previously been convicted of an attack on another partner and her mother, where he produced a knife. The final year of his sentence had been suspended.

Mr Poole said there should not have been any time off for a knife crime and that Murphy would not have met his sister if he had served his full sentence. The victim had believed her new partner had just returned from Spain but he had been in jail, Mr Poole said.

Fianna Fáil justice spokesman Jim O’Callaghan said the proposed legislation is victim-centred. He said it was from conversations with Mr Poole that he realised how important the right to information was.

Under the proposed legislation gardaí would collate information on perpetrators of domestic violence, Mr O’Callaghan said, adding it would not just be people with convictions — there would also be information from the Pulse system, and gardaí would have the discretion to provide information where there was the possibility of a threat to a new partner.

Mr O’Callaghan said gardaí were getting better at investigating domestic violence cases so it was important they be involved. He was working with the Minister for Justice “on this important and complex issue”.

Every political party had a responsibility to put forward proposals for the legislation, which required a coherent response, he said.

Mr Poole said he and his family wanted to see the legislation introduced so no other family would have to go through what they had experienced and no other woman would experience what had happened to Ms Poole.

“She had looked for help, she had tried to get him out of her life.”