The brother of murdered West Cork mother of three Valerie French Kilroy has written a book about her tragic death and its terrible aftermath.<\/p>\n
David French is also campaigning to change the law in his late sister\u2019s name to protect other families. Valerie\u2019s Law would strip someone convicted of intentionally killing their children\u2019s other parent of guardianship rights.<\/p>\n
Currently, there “is a loophole in child safety in Ireland” because people who kill their partners or ex-partners fully retain guardianship of any shared children, Mr French said.<\/p>\n
The book For Valerie by David French will be available from Thursday, May 15, and can be pre-ordered via Easons.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe point of the book is to fill out the picture of who Valerie was, what she was like, and what the dynamics of the relationship were as well,\u201d Mr French said.<\/p>\n
Mr French thoroughly researched domestic homicide following his sister\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you see the research, you see that all the women are different, they\u2019re all individuals, but all the killers are remarkably similar.<\/p>\n
\n They usually show up as fairly manipulative, fairly charming, but very narcissistic\n <\/p>\n
\u201cYou see so many similarities in these women\u2019s stories. This book is for Valerie, but many other brothers and sisters could write the same thing about their loved ones.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Writing the book was useful as a way to work through the case over the five years the family waited for it to go to trial and then re-trial, he said.<\/p>\n
Once the verdict was given, Mr French had a manuscript ready.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it was good to write it because you make sense out of things by writing. It is helpful. You see the similarities across other cases.<\/p>\n
\n You sit down and look at what was happening and what the dynamics were, and that side of it sometimes gets lost in all the usual emotion and grief\n <\/p>\n
\u201cYou look all these problems that come from a central place and a system almost in denial that this happens.”<\/p>\n
Highlighting the huge amount of \u201caftermath\u201d for a victim\u2019s family \u2014 between court proceedings, handling wills and probate, dealing with all of their loved one’s affairs\u00a0\u2014 was another point to the book, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe perpetrator just sits around inside the prison, playing ball, and the victim’s family is left cleaning up the mess,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n