Man not guilty of partner’s attempted murder by reason of insanity

A man who attacked his partner, stuffed underwear in her mouth and beat her with a hammer has been found not guilty of trying to murder her by reason of insanity.

Tomas Gajowniczek (37), of The Ice Rink Apartments, Dolphin’s Barn, Dublin, pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to the attempted murder of Alicja Kalinowska (30) at their home on June 16th, 2016.

He also pleaded not guilty to intentionally or recklessly causing serious harm to Ms Kalinowska on the same date at the same location.

The jury heard that Mr Gajowniczek punched Ms Kalinowska repeatedly in the face, stuffed underwear in her mouth and held her nose to stop her breathing, beat her with a hammer and gouged her eyes with his thumbs.

Ms Kalinowska told the jury that she passed out when he put a bottle in her mouth and forced her to drink the contents. After almost nine hours of deliberation, the jury of six men and six women found him not guilty by reason of insanity on both counts.

Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy committed Mr Gajowniczek to the Central Mental Hospital (CMH). He will return to court on May 9th when a doctor will say whether he is suffering from a mental disorder and in need of ongoing in-patient care.

Ronan Munro SC, defending, noted that during the trial psychiatrists who had assessed Mr Gajowniczek had stated that he is no longer suffering a mental disorder but added that he understands why the court would send him for assessment.

Ms Kalinowska told the trial that she started going out with Mr Gajowniczek in Poland in 2006 and they moved to Ireland to find work a few years later. She got a job in a Subway sandwich shop while he worked nights in a Maxol garage.

Traumatised

During one of his shifts there was a break-in and he was tied up and locked in a bathroom. He was traumatised and came home that night shaking. He refused to go back to work and was prescribed Xanax for his anxiety.

He remained on social welfare after that and Ms Kalinowska noticed that his behaviour became strange following the death of his grandfather around Christmas 2015.

He was upset that they did not have enough money to travel to Poland for the funeral. From January onward Ms Kalinowska noted a difference in him. He would insult her, call her names and accuse her of being a bad mother.

One night she was so upset by the abuse she walked out and went to the apartment of a male neighbour for a few hours.

When she returned, Mr Gajowniczek accused her of cheating. She admitted that she kissed the neighbour, accepted she had done wrong and apologised.

This, the prosecution alleged, was the background to the attack on June 16th, 2016.

The prosecution called Prof Damian Mohan, of the Central Mental Hospital, who said that the accused was “furious” about the infidelity and due to long-term daily use of cannabis, was unable to control his anger.

Delusional

Prof Mohan’s colleague Dr Conor O’Neill disagreed, telling the trial that he had treated Mr Gajowniczek following his arrest and believed he was suffering from a delusional disorder at the time and therefore should qualify for a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity.

Dr O’Neill said the disorder led to bizarre beliefs that Ms Kalinowska was putting amphetamines in his milk, poisoning or drugging his food and drink and stealing his tax returns.

Mr Justice McCarthy told the jury that for a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity they would have to be satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Mr Gajowniczek committed the physical act but that he was unable to refrain from doing so because of a mental disorder.

Photographs of the injuries inflicted on Ms Kalinowska, showing extensive bruising and swelling on her face and injuries to her limbs and torso, were shown to the jury. The jury also heard medical evidence of her injuries, including a fractured nose and injuries to her eyes.