A Brisbane woman has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in a domestic violence situation, confessing that she threw a knife that penetrated her husband’s heart just days before Christmas in 2017.
9News reports Katie Anne Castel, 38, today faced Brisbane Supreme Court to face charges relating to the death of her husband, Jarred Paul Castel.
The court heard Castel, the former businesswoman behind pin and accessory line Adverbium Design, argued with her husband when he returned to their Chapel Hill home two hours later than she had anticipated.
It is alleged Castel threw a computer before throwing the knife at her husband, who was standing about two metres away.
The court heard the knife lodged in his chest, creating a four-centimetre wound. He died shortly after sustaining the injury.
Crown prosecutor Judy Geary said Castel had not been threatened by her husband at the time, and that her use of force was “totally disproportionate to the nature of the disagreement.”
Geary added the likelihood of her actions resulting in her husband’s death would have been apparent.
Castel’s guilty plea to manslaughter in a domestic violence context came after the charge was downgraded from murder.
Castel, who is a mother to the couple’s five-year-old son, is expected to face sentencing later today.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, calls can be made 24 hours a day on 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) to the National Sexual Assault, Family & Domestic Violence Counselling Line, or to Lifeline on 131 114.
