Michelle Darragh had a golden heart, two boys she adored, and a vocation in social work that allowed her to assist members of her neighbourhood.
In September 2021, she intervened and prevented her partner from attempting suicide.
He ended hers one month later.
The savage assassination of Darragh in her family home on October 9, 2021, was termed as terrible by Victorian Supreme Court Judge Andrew Tinney, who sentenced Benjamin Coman, 31, to 25 years in prison on Friday.
Once the sentence was read in front of a courtroom filled with family members, Darragh’s mother Dianne started crying.
Her daughter cared for other people’s kids while also cherishing her own children and her own family. They are currently raising hers.
She remarked outside of court, accompanied by her husband Ashley and their kids Samantha, James, and Aaron, “I miss her so much.”
When Darragh was killed, she was 12 weeks along in the pregnancy with her third child. While her parents looked after her youngsters, she broke her relationship with Coman and went to get clothes.
Her family became concerned when she failed to show up.
When her father went to check on her, he found her dead.
He claimed that incident left him with a soul scar.
Coman had used a carving knife to stab Darragh three times while muzzling her cries.
Because she was pregnant, she was much more defenceless and innocent, according to Justice Tinney.
Prior to the murder of Darragh, Coman, 31, had seen a decline in his mental state.
Dr. Andrew Carroll, a psychiatrist, claimed that Coman had experienced years of drug usage that led to the development of psychotic depression, including paranoia, voices, hallucinations, and delusions.
He held the idea that Darragh had been unfaithful to him and that their children were not his.
Yet according to Justice Tinney, Coman was possessive and envious for years before going through a psychotic break.
When he murdered the mother-of-two at their previous family home, Benjamin Coman had illusions that the unborn child belonged to his ex-partner instead of him.
The court was informed that the pair had previously split up twice due to problems such as Coman’s drug usage, his admission of frequenting brothels, and careless squandering of shared savings, which included $82,000 on a car.
Carroll claimed that Coman’s illness poisoned his entire perspective of Darragh and that Coman was feeling desperation and anger.
He claimed that his long-simmering resentment had burst into violent rage.
Coman told authorities that although he had clashed with Darragh, he had only stabbed her once and had not been aware of it at the time.
Justice Tinney, however, said that it was improbable that Coman was unaware of what he had done to Darragh.
The judge stated that Coman’s father, a professional psychologist, gave a thorough recommendation for him at a hearing before sentencing.
Coman, according to Mr. Darragh, exhibited no remorse for his acts, and the sentencing was fair.
When Tinney read the line, one of the crowd members yelled, “Suffer you dog,” and he apologised.
As the judge left the court, someone else said, “Thank you.”
In honour of Darragh, family members wore orange ribbons to the hearing.
Those who knew her best laughed when Mr. Darragh said outside of court, “She was infatuated with orange, it was her favourite colour.
Coman was given a minimum sentence of 20 years to serve before being eligible for parole.
