Domestic abuse: Victim says sentence is 'slap on the wrist'

Louise Gilmore suffered several injuries following the assault in November 2019

A woman who was attacked and left with severe injuries by her then-partner has said she feels let down by the judicial system.

James Joseph McKinley, 32, of Henderson Avenue in Belfast, admitted one count of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and one count of criminal damage.

He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison suspended for three years.

The court heard the victim, Louise Gilmore, suffered several injuries.

The 34-year-old's injuries included a broken nose, missing teeth, severe bruising throughout her body and a wound to her leg.

These were as a result of being attacked by McKinley at her home in west Belfast in November 2019.

McKinley was also made subject to a five-year restraining order which bans him from harassing Ms Gilmore or causing her to fear violence from him.

'Impulsive and violent'

During sentencing, the judge said his actions were found to have been "impulsive and violent" and he had considered aggravating factors which included "multiple blows" inflicted, the "sustained and prolonged" nature of the attack and the use of a knife and hurling stick.

However, he added the case lacked many of the features usually associated with domestic incidents, including "a pattern of ongoing abuse and a previous history of domestic violence".

The pair had been together for one year, and Ms Gilmore had given birth to their daughter four months previously. She had recently qualified as a nurse.

Ms Gilmore said there was not a part of her body that "wasn't black and blue" following the assault

On the night of the attack, the baby was with a family member, however, her son was in the house and witnessed some of the assault.

The court heard Ms Gilmore was subjected to a "sustained and prolonged" attack.

"I remember my head being bashed off the toilet cistern," she said.

"I had already been concussed at this stage, screaming for my son.

"I remember being hit on the head with a hurley stick... everything went black."

Her son was able to get help and the police were called. She was taken to hospital.

Louise Gilmore's injuries included a broken nose, missing teeth and severe bruising

"When my vision finally came back, I couldn't believe it," she said.

"There wasn't one part of my body that wasn't black and blue. There's pictures of my face that have circulated around social media and it only shows a percentage of what happened that night."

Her physical injuries have begun to heal over time, but she has been left with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, anxiety and depression.

She said she developed a drug addiction in the aftermath of the attack and her children were taken away from her.

'A slap on the wrist'

"I'm waking up screaming in the middle of the night, not only for what he done, but for my children," she said.

"I would ask any MLA, or MP, the justice minister, anyone, to please come out and help women like myself who are in the same boat.

"A suspended sentence to me is a slap on the wrist for a really brutal, severe attack that is going to have a prolonged effect on my brain for the rest of my life."

She said she would encourage anyone who is a victim of domestic violence to report it to the authorities.

Louise Gilmore pictured before the 2019 assault

"I would like others to speak out and would want others to speak out, but I feel extremely let down by the justice system today," Ms Gilmore said.

"It completely knocked the heart out of me, every single time I went, it was put back or it was adjourned or something came up we didn't know about.

"I look like an old woman now, I feel deflated, I don't think I'll ever be the same, but I hope to move on and recover from this."

Ms Gilmore said she is focussed on rebuilding her life now, is no longer using drugs and her goal is to get her children back.

She is also considering appealing the sentence.