A teen tried to flee to Belfast from Birkenhead after a woman suffered severe injuries to her head in a brutal "hooked blade" attack.
The woman was met by "unjustifiable" violence when looking for her pet lurcher Duke who had been driven off in her boyfriend's stolen Nissan X-Tail on December 8. The couple followed social media suggestions that the car may be at a caravan park in Markfield.
Matthew Rowcliffe, prosecuting yesterday at Leicester Crown Court, said the the victim, her partner and brother borrowed a white Vauxhall car and arrived at the Whitegate Stables site where they located the stolen car but not the dog.
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In response to shouts and pleas for the return of the dog, 18-year-old Michael McDonagh emerged from a nearby chalet carrying a fearsome-looking weapon. It was described in court as a two foot long hooked blade on a handle "like an old farming tool used for felling".
The defendant was aggressively yelling: "I'm a McDonagh. Do you know who I am" before he struck the woman, in her 30s, on the head and left arm causing severe lacerations down to the bone, severing muscle and nerves on the limb that required "multiple surgeries".
The three terrified visitors escaped in the white Vauxhall that, meanwhile, sustained "considerable damage" caused by other residents at the site. They sought help at a BP garage on the A50 Shaw Lane in Markfield, as the gravely injured woman was bleeding extensively. The police arrived to administer emergency treatment, before she was taken to Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre.
In a personal impact statement, the victim described having 15 stitches to her scalp wound and multiple sutures to her arm, that was in a cast for three months. Despite extensive physiotherapy, she is unable to clench her left fist, hold implements or do hobbies, such as gardening.
Her thumb is "completely numb with no feeling of hot or cold" and it has affected her "daily life and ability to work". She was too frightened to leave home for several months and still has to be accompanied, due to being in constant fear.
McDonagh was detained by police in Birkenhead the day after the attack trying to board a ferry to Belfast. He originally denied wounding, with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and only changed his plea to admit guilt after a jury was sworn in at the start of a trial - that was then halted.
LeicestershireLive reported Ciara McElvogue, mitigating before sentence, said McDonagh played no part in the theft of the Nissan X-Trail or the dog. She said he had no previous convictions and "lacked maturity" due to his young age.
The barrister added: "He couldn't understand why three individuals were arriving at the site, starting to cause bother. His intention was to protect his grandmother and aunt, who have brought him up since the death of this mother when he was three years old.
"He made an ill-considered decision to arm himself with this weapon. He used it, causing substantial injuries and regrets doing so. Whilst the vehicle was there, it's an extremely large site, with 300 caravans and chalets. You will be familiar with the culture of what happens at travelling sites and how people sometimes react to strangers arriving - he was raised in a certain way on the travellers' site."
The Nissan X-Trail was later found abandoned in Priory Lane, Ulverscroft. Duke was found safe in Loughborough three days after the incident.
Sentencing, Recorder Cameron Crowe told McDonagh: "You chose to voluntarily attack someone who was already, indirectly, a victim of crime. You chose to use a highly dangerous weapon, without justification, to cause grave and permanent injuries that will remain with her for life.
"It must have been terrifying. You swung the weapon, of some scale, at least twice, causing severe injuries, penetrating through to the bone of the skull and caused a 15 centimetre laceration to the victim's arm, causing not only significant scarring, but she lacks full movement in her arm and it impacts on her daily life.
"I'm told she's never going to fully recover. She's also now fearful and reclusive, she's on medication for the ongoing psychological impact, because of what you did."
McDonagh was sentenced to an eight year and three month detention sentence, of which he was told to expect to serve two thirds. He was placed on an indefinite restraining order, banning any future contact with the victim, her brother and partner.
Afterwards, officer in the case, Detective Constable James Clayton, of the force's complex investigation team, said: "This was a completely unprovoked attack. The victim and her partner were doing whatever they could to get their dog back, but were confronted by McDonagh - a dangerous and violent individual.
"What happened that evening has had a significant impact on the victim and she's still re-living her ordeal. I can only hope today's outcome - and the fact McDonagh is now behind bars - will provide a degree of closure."
