Courts / Kilkenny / Report

'Death had a face': murderer gets life for inflicting 'unnatural terror' on pensioner in her own home

Date
2022-04-01

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Kilkenny

Summary

In a Central Criminal Court sentencing hearing on 1 April 2022, Trevor Rowe, a 30‑year‑old drug addict, was given a mandatory life sentence for the murder of 70‑year‑old Anne Butler on 20 March 2020. Butler was stabbed, beaten, had her throat slit and was found with a large piece of cardboard in her mouth and a strip of her ear in the living room. Rowe, who remained unmoving and head‑bowed during the hearing, admitted to killing Butler, saying he had "slit her throat and stuck a knife in her head". He had 31 prior convictions, including drug offences and assault. The judge, Ms Justice Karen O'Connor, imposed the life sentence, noting the "unimaginable grief" caused to Butler's family. The hearing included victim impact statements from Butler's daughter Elayne and sister Paula, describing Butler as brave, kind and devoted.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: 'Death had a face': murderer gets life for inflicting 'unnatural terror' on pensioner in her own home. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

March 20, 2020 Incident
March 25 2020 Hearing Or Sentence
March 25 Incident
March 20 Other
2022-04-01 Publication

Why: She said the last time she met her mother at her home they could not come in close contact because of Covid restrictions and that she asked Anne from outside if she would be ok. CNI source report

Case subjects

Trevor Rowe

Background Person

Outcome: Today at a sentencing hearing, Rowe of Abbey Street, Kilkenny, was given the mandatory life sentence for the murder by Ms Justice Karen O'Connor, an offence which she said had caused "unimaginable grief" to Ms Butler's family. Ms Justice O'Connor imposed the mandatory life sentence upon Rowe and sympathised with the family of Ms Butler, who she said acted with "strength and dignity throughout the trial and through unimaginable grief".