A woman who stabbed her on-off partner to death, claiming that had she not picked up a chef’s knife to defend herself, she would have been “battered”, has been sentenced to five-and-a-half years in jail.
At the Central Criminal Court on Monday, Ms Justice Caroline Biggs said Sandra Sandaraite’s relationship with Zbigniew Czech had been a “toxic” one, with alcohol a factor that made it “volatile and violent”.
Sandaraite, with an address at Academy Street, Navan, Co Meath, had originally been charged with the murder of Mr Czech at the same address on December 10th, 2022. However, her plea to manslaughter with the use of excessive force in self-defence was accepted by the State in March.
Gardaí found Mr Czech covered in blood on a stairwell at the apartment block on Academy Street after Sandaraite informed emergency services that she had discovered his body.
Sandaraite had initially denied any involvement in his death and further denied knowing who he was, despite being in an “on-and-off” relationship with Mr Czech for years.
Ms Justice Biggs identified nine years’ imprisonment as a pre-mitigation headline for the charge of manslaughter.
Ms Justice Biggs said she would discount three years of that sentence for Sandaraite’s early plea and her personal circumstances and then suspended the final six months for two years to encourage her rehabilitation. The sentence was backdated to December 2022, when Sandaraite was first taken into custody.
Broken bones
During the sentence hearing last week, the court heard that the relationship with Mr Czech (47) was framed by "excessive consumption of alcohol" and that Sandaraite (39) had presented in hospital with "broken bones" and had been punched “several times”.
During her first interview with gardaí, Sandaraite said that Mr Czech’s death meant there was “one less motherf***er in the world not around to ruin some young girl’s life [Sic]” and described the knife she used as “beautiful”.
Sandaraite initially told gardaí that she had lost her job and family because of Mr Czech and that she had "no tears". "I feel free now," she told officers.
In jailing Sandaraite on Monday, Ms Justice Biggs said that the three-year on-off relationship between the pair had given rise to 24 complaints to gardaí, “from both sides”, of violent acts.
Ms Justice Biggs said Sandaraite told gardaí that there was blood on her fingernails on the night because she had checked Mr Czech’s pulse while he lay on the stairwell.
She said Sandaraite had claimed that Mr Czech became violent after drinking vodka and began “pushing and grabbing” her. Sandaraite said she took the knife to “intimidate” Mr Czech before stabbing him.
Ms Justice Biggs said the knife was found in the deceased’s hand and that “no coherent explanation” had been offered by Sandaraite for this.
The judge said a fatal stab wound had been sustained by Mr Czech on his upper left lung caused by a “chef’s knife” taken from a closed box in the apartment.
Watermarks
Ms Justice Biggs said kickboards in the kitchen of the apartment had been wiped clean and that wipes and Mr Czech’s jacket had been thrown out of an apartment window. The judge noted that watermarks were also found on the knife.
Ms Justice Biggs noted that despite protection and safety orders being secured by Sandaraite against Mr Czech, both would frequently meet up to drink, in what the judge said was a “toxic” situation.
Sandaraite said she thought she was going to be beaten up and had been in hospital many times and felt “she would be dead” if she did not defend herself, said Ms Justice Biggs.
Ms Justice Biggs said the history of domestic abuse suffered by Sandaraite “must have informed her mind” when she took the knife from the box.
Ms Justice Biggs said that, as a chef, Sandaraite must have had a professional knowledge of knives and that she chose the knife used in the killing over other smaller knives available at the kitchen area of the apartment.
The judge said Sandaraite had introduced a “lethal weapon” to the incident in “self-preservation and self-interest”, when reacting to Mr Czech’s actions in the context of his physical abuse.
Ms Justice Biggs said Sandaraite claimed she “truly” understands the pain she caused to the family and friends of Mr Czech, which “weighs heavily on her mind”.
The judge noted Sandaraite’s low risk of reoffending, the early guilty plea, her remorse, good work history, lack of previous convictions and that she was doing “exceptionally well in prison”.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can contact Women’s Aid (24-hour freephone helpline at 1800-341 900, email helpline@womensaid.ie) or Men’s Aid Ireland (confidential helpline at 01-554 3811, email hello@mensaid.ie) for support and information.
Safe Ireland also offers a number of local services and helplines at safeireland.ie/get-help/where-to-find-help/. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/11
