Man jailed over devastating assault that left former partner practically blinded

The man had five previous convictions from the District Court.

A DUBLIN WOMAN who was punched in the eye by her former partner, leaving her vision permanently damaged, has told a court how her devastating injuries have affected every aspect of her life.

Stephanie Hoey (33) suffered a blow-out fracture to her eye socket when she was attacked by her ex-boyfriend Conor Murphy in her home in Clondalkin two years ago.

Hoey required surgery to take bone from her hip to correct damage to her eye socket and cheekbone and has experienced PTSD and lasting nerve and muscle damage.

Murphy (23) of Edenmore Avenue, Coolock, Dublin 5, pleaded guilty previously to assault causing serious in Clondalkin on 20 August 2021.

He also admitted to burglary and producing a knife on the same occasion.

Passing sentence today, Judge Orla Crowe said this was “an entirely unprovoked attack on a woman in her own home”.

Judge Crowe highlighted the injuries sustained by Hoey, which included a left orbital blowout fracture which involved bone from her hip being used in her cheekbone.

She said the injured party has been left with crippling migraines and will never get her full eyesight back, and it will continue to deteriorate.

The judge said there was a high level of “culpability”, which must be marked with a significant custodial sentence.

She outlined that the maximum sentence available to her was life and set a headline sentence of ten years.

She took mitigating factors into consideration including his guilty plea, his very “contrite” letter of apology, his young age, his remorse, as well as letters handed in from the prison governor and his sister.

Judge Crowe sentenced Murphy to seven and a half years in prison and suspended the final 18 months.

She placed him under the supervision of the Probation Services for one year post release and backdated the sentence to when he went into custody on this matter.

At an earlier hearing, Hoey said in her victim impact statement to Dublin Circuit Criminal Court she said no words could describe how her life has been “torn apart” by Murphy.

Doctors have said her eyesight will never be the same and will continue to deteriorate, Hoey said, adding that daily issues with her left eye are a painful reminder of her life-changing injuries.

Hoey said she experiences constant flashbacks, nightmares, and panic attacks and that for a long time, she was afraid to leave her home but also afraid to stay in her home.

She said her daughter had missed out on two years of her childhood and experienced the same trauma as she had because the child was worried about her mother and how she was coping.

Hoey said she has been, at times, unable to function and thanked her mother for taking over care for herself and her daughter.

“She has been my lifeline,” Ms Hoey said.

Hoey said she has been battling with her mental health, in particular PTSD, for the last two years and that her only sense of safety came when she was notified of Murphy’s arrest.

“I could finally walk out my front door,” she said.

Garda Charles McPartland told Olan Callinan, BL, prosecuting, that Hoey and Murphy were partners from 2018 to 2020 and briefly on and off thereafter.

The court heard that Murphy arrived at Hoey’s house at 6am on the day in question and that it was clear he was not sober.

The victim invited him in and went back to bed until lunchtime to find Murphy still in the house, clearly agitated and punching his hand.

Hoey later told gardaí that Murphy became more aggressive, and she tried to de-escalate the situation by asking him to go to the shop for an errand.

Murphy returned to her house at around 5pm and put his foot in the door, forcing his way in.

Hoey told gardaí that Murphy attacked her on entry, screaming at her and foaming at the mouth.

He punched her full force into her left eye with a closed fist, and the victim fell backwards and briefly lost consciousness.

When Hoey came to, Murphy was over her, grabbing her hair and hitting the back of her head off the ground.

Hoey said she managed to kick him off, run upstairs and phone a neighbour, who then called to the door.

Murphy grabbed a cheese knife and stood in between Hoey and her neighbour, but she left the house with her neighbour, and the gardaí were called.

Garda McPartland said the neighbour described Murphy as very agitated and “acting in a crazed manner”.

Hoey was taken to the hospital, where she underwent a CT scan, but surgery had to be postponed due to the severe swelling in her left eye.

Ultimately, she had surgery in the Eye and Ear hospital but still suffers from multiple sequelae, including nerve damage, muscle twitching and double vision.

Murphy has five previous convictions from the District Court, including failure to appear, possessing drugs for sale or supply and possessing stolen property.

He also has a conviction from Majorca for resisting an authority.

Garda McPartland agreed with Oisín Clarke, BL, defending, that Murphy was abusing drugs at the time of the offence.

A witness described the accused as “spitting from the mouth” and “out of it on drugs”, the court heard.

The court heard that the Director of Public Prosecutions puts the case at the higher end of the scale of seriousness for offences of this nature.

Murphy has been in custody since May 2023.

Clarke handed a prison governor’s report and education report on behalf of his client, along with urine analysis to the court.

Clarke said his client fully accepts what he has done and expressed remorse.

A handwritten letter from the defendant was handed into the court in which outlined his remorse and apology.

Counsel said his client, at one stage, was spending €600 a week on cocaine and tablets.