BRIAN KEARNEY last night began a life sentence for the murder of his wife Siobhán. Kearney, 51, was found guilty of his 38-year-old wife's murder by a majority jury verdict of 11 to one after five hours and 24 minutes of deliberation in the Central Criminal Court at Dublin.
Before the eight women and four men of the jury re-entered a packed courtroom 3, Mr Justice Barry White reminded those jostling for space it was a tense moment for everyone and outbursts emotional or triumphant should be suppressed.
The court heard Kearney murdered his wife and the mother of their three-year-old son at the family's home at Carnroe, Knocknashee, Goatstown, Dublin, on February 28th, 2006 - his 49th birthday.
The jury was told he strangled her in her room, then used a Dyson vacuum cleaner flex as a ligature before trying to hoist her over the en-suite door in her bedroom in an attempt to make it look like a suicide.
The McLaughlin family hugged and cried once the jury left.
Kearney's daughter from a previous relationship, Aoife, clutched her father.
After sentencing Kearney to life in prison, Mr Justice White refused a request by the McLaughlin family to read a victim impact statement in court saying the executive had provided for victim impact statements in some cases but murder was not one of them.
He said that it did not seem proper the court interfere with an order of the executive.
The McLaughlin family waited until the prison van carrying Kearney left the Four Courts before they walked hand-in-hand to meet the media.
During the 13-day trial the court heard Siobhán was filing for a divorce and had sought solicitors' advice.
While Kearney was asset-rich with property and business interests worth €5.1 million before tax, he faced €15,300 each month in mortgage repayments on the family home which had been remortgaged to build a new house next door to the family home and pay for a hotel, Hotel Salvia, that the couple had purchased in Spain.
With net annual earnings of €118,586, Kearney had received letters from the bank telling him he needed to reduce his borrowing.
The prosecution, led by Denis Vaughan Buckley SC, said a separation and Siobhán's plans to move into the new home they had built did not fit Kearney's financial plans.
"The separation would not suit him financially in fact it would increase the pressure on him." So he killed her.
In closing the prosecution case, Dominic McGinn BL said Kearney had gone into his wife's bedroom that morning and manually strangled his wife.
Then at some stage he used the vacuum cleaner flex as a ligature around her neck.
Kearney knew Siobhán's sister Niamh would be arriving to park her car at their home as she did every morning and he could not be found with the body so he left, locking Siobhán's bedroom door, slipping the key under it and leaving their three-year-old son in the house.
Niamh arrived and could not rouse her sister so she called her father Owen who broke into the bedroom and found his daughter dead on the floor with the purple vacuum cleaner flex around her body.
The defence, led by Mr Patrick Gageby SC, maintained Siobhán committed suicide and the couple's separation was amicable.
Mr Gageby asked for leave to appeal the conviction which was refused by Mr Justice White who said Kearney could remain on legal aid should his refusal be overturned.