Her son was just three weeks old, and the tragedy of her death was compounded by the fact that Danny O’Donoghue was her uncle. “For one member of a family to cause the death of another only adds to the family’s grief,” the judge said. Mr O’Donoghue had no issue with his niece, however the court heard there had been tensions around the time between the O’Rourke, Sheridan, O’Donoghue families whom it was heard were interconnected through marriage. Mr Sheridan told gardaí he felt as if his life “flashed” before him as O’Donoghue approached him with a “3ft machete”. Mr Sheridan said O’Donoghue told him: “I’m going to kill you, you’re dead, I’m going to sink this [machete] through your neck”.

Source: Irish Examiner January 22, 2026 11:23 UTC