Eric Locke pleaded not guilty to murdering Sonia Blount

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Eric Locke has pleaded not guilty to murdering Sonia Blount. He admits causing her death. He is on trial at the Central Criminal Court, charged with murdering her in a room at the Plaza Hotel in Tallaght on 16 February 2014. The proceedings were reported on 18 May 2017.

Consultant psychiatrist Dr Francis Kelly said Locke was motivated by revenge and extreme anger rather than mental illness. The report said Locke used a fake Facebook profile to meet Ms Blount after she cut contact with him. Dr Kelly described the planning as complex and detailed.

Dr Kelly said Locke told him he planned to buy items to bind and gag Ms Blount so she would listen to his pain without interruption. Locke claimed killing her was not planned: she shouted on seeing the restraint items and he panicked.

Dr Kelly said two defence psychiatrists had suggested Locke had a mental disorder. He disagreed and said that, even if one existed, it was not severe enough to impair his capacity to form intent. He considered Locke’s planning and actions after the killing evidence of that capacity.

He accepted that Locke had been highly distressed and might have met the criteria for an episode of depression, while an adjustment reaction was another possibility. However, he said contact through the false profile had lifted Locke’s mood so that he no longer met the criteria for a moderate depressive episode.

The report said both sides were expected to give closing speeches to the jury on Friday morning. It reported no verdict or sentence.