Garda killer Stephen Silver has “expressed remorse” behind bars - as he spends his time in a specialised unit.
Silver (46), who was last week found guilty of the capital murder of Detective Garda Colm Horkan, has been housed in separate unit in Dublin’s Mountjoy Prison.
Sources say when Silver was first admitted to prison following the murder of Mr Horkan in Castlerea, Co Roscommon in June 2020, he was “erratic” and extremely difficult to deal with.
Read More: Carl Mullan announced as winner of Dancing with the Stars after stunning finale
Upon entering the unit in Mountjoy, sources say he had become calmer, and even expressed remorse for his actions in the killing of the hero Detective Garda.
“He’s been full of remorse. He’s also been assessed repeatedly given his obvious problems.
“But he isn’t a problem now that he’s housed in the right place. He’s constantly getting psychological assessment and is on a strict regime,” a source said.
It is understood that Silver is detained in an isolated part of Mountjoy Prison and is largely confined to his cell for up to 23 hours a day.
Prisoners detained in the unit are not allowed to mix - and therefore Silver’s interactions with others are extremely limited
Sources say he is only ever let out of the cell for meals and for psychological assessment.
They added that given Silver’s history, he will need constant evaluation - but for the moment, authorities are happy to keep him detained where he is.
Silver is awaiting sentencing after being convicted of capital murder last week.
However he faces a mandatory sentence of a minimum of 40 years behind bars for the killing, which sent shockwaves across Ireland.
After two trials at the Central Criminal Court, a jury found Stephen Silver, who shot Det Garda Colm Horkan 11 times with his own gun, guilty of capital murder last week.
The jury of seven men and five women deliberated for a total of eight hours and 39 minutes before returning their verdict on Wednesday to Ms Justice Tara Burns.
In November last year, a jury of seven men and five women spent just under nine hours considering their verdicts over three days before revealing that they had a disagreement that they were not able to resolve.
That jury had been given the option of returning a majority verdict.
The trial heard that Garda Horkan was a well-regarded member of the force with 25 years’ service and no disciplinary issues on his record. The prosecution told the jury that Garda Horkan had no idea when he signed out his firearm on the afternoon of June 17th, 2020, that he would be shot dead with the same gun just nine hours later.
They maintained Silver had a "seething resentment" toward gardaí and that the shooting of Gda Horkan was “a deliberate action done with the intent of murder".
Following the verdict, Ms Justice Burns thanked the jury for their diligence in what she described as an extremely difficult case involving a lot of legal issues.
“You sat and took all of those in and it is clear to me you listened to every piece of evidence,” she said.
Ms Justice Burns said it was not often that the courts have a case of this nature, nor was it often to have people who applied themselves so diligently to the case. She told the jury they were now exempt from jury service for the rest of their lives.
Silver, a motorbike mechanic from Aughaward, Foxford, Co Mayo, had pleaded not guilty to the murder of Det Garda Horkan knowing or being reckless as to whether he was a member of An Garda Siochana acting in accordance with his duty.
He had pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Castlerea, Co Roscommon on June 17th, 2020, and the jury were told the main issue in the trial was Mr Silver’s state of mind at the time of the shooting.
During the trial, the jury heard evidence from Silver that he believed Gda Horkan was “a heavy down from Dublin” who was trying to kill him. He said that Gda Horkan was wearing a Tommy Hilfiger jacket and “didn’t come across” as a garda. He gave evidence that a struggle ensued between them before he fell to the ground, and in the process of getting up he felt the gun on Gda Horkan’s hip.
“He had his hand on the gun and I had my hand on the gun and we wrestled. The gun came out; I couldn’t tell you who took it out,” said Silver.
He said that he felt Gda Horkan “was trying to kill me”.
“I kept shooting until the gun finished and there was no ammunition left,” Silver said.
The jury also heard evidence from Dr Brenda Wright, interim clinical director at the Central Mental Hospital, who said it was her view that Silver’s illness at the time he killed Gda Horkan was such that it impaired his thinking and his judgement and therefore contributed significantly to his actions at that time.
However, witness for the prosecution, consultant psychiatrist Professor Harry Kennedy told the jury that he found “no positive evidence” that Silver had suffered a relapse of bipolar affective disorder at the time he shot dead Gda Horkan.
READ NEXT:
US lawyer suing Daniel Kinahan says mob boss's days are numbered
Video shows Dublin GAA legend Jason Sherlock lifted into New York St Patrick's Day parade by gardaí
Irish people's favourite word to refer to their mothers - and it's not mam or ma
'Life is fleeting' - Former RTE star to take time off after road crash scare
Father Ted creator loses TV career and marriage and on medication over tweets
Get news updates direct to your inbox by signing up to our daily newsletter here
