Niamh Gallagher broke down in tears as she was sentenced to more than three years in prison for stabbing her boyfriend during a romantic weekend away in Staffordshire.
The attack happened in January 2023 at Quarry Walk Lodges in Freehay, near Cheadle, where Gallagher had planned a birthday getaway for her then-partner. However, the trip turned violent after he discovered she was cheating. Under the influence of alcohol and cocaine, Gallagher, then 19, grabbed two kitchen knives and stabbed him in the leg. She also struck him in the head with car keys, causing three puncture wounds.
Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard that Gallagher became increasingly erratic during the evening after drinking and taking drugs. After a confrontation about her phone use, her boyfriend checked her messages while she slept and woke her when he suspected infidelity. An argument followed, during which Gallagher armed herself with knives and lunged at him.
Despite claiming memory loss and citing PTSD from a previous abusive relationship, Gallagher, now 21 and from Wetherby, Leeds, admitted to wounding with intent. She told the court she believed she was under threat when he woke her but acknowledged her actions did not qualify as self-defence.
Following the attack, her boyfriend called emergency services. Gallagher was found hiding under covers in the cabin and made no comment during her police interview. She has now been sentenced to three years and five months in prison.
