Mum of murdered boxer Kevin Sheehy feels he is with her ‘spiritually’ for Christmas

Tracey Tully told how she finally feels some peace this Christmas after a “horrible” three years since her 20-year-old son was brutally murdered by Logan Jackson in July, 2019.

“Something just came over me this year,” she said. “I don’t know why but suddenly I felt like I was looking forward to it. There was something there, like Kevin was coming home to me, spiritually. And it’s lovely, it’s a lovely feeling.”

Tracey revealed that it is the first time she has put up the tree herself, as it had always been Kevin, “who was Christmas in this house”.

“Even though he was 19, he was like a big baby around this time of year,” she added.

Tracey was speaking a month after a difficult High Court action aimed at preventing her son's killer from being transferred from an Irish prison to one in England was resolved.

Earlier this year she had been granted permission to legally challenge a decision by the Minister for Justice to sanction Logan's proposed transfer to his native UK.

She had claimed the Minister's decision amounted to a breach of her rights under the 2017 Victims of Crime Act.

Last month, the court was told that the parties had agreed that the case can now be struck out after the Minister for Justice decided to rescind her sanctioning of Jackson's transfer to a British prison.

The court also made an order that legal costs incurred by Tracey, and Jackson be paid by the State.

“We were delighted because it was unexpected,” Tracey said. “We thought the case was going to put back again but then out of nowhere this came up and they were fighting over the costs.

“But we won all court costs and he (Logan) is not going anywhere for the foreseeable future, and at least for a long time.

“The decision cost the government a lot of money but we took no joy out of winning.

“People were asking are there going to be celebrations, and I was saying, no. For me, it was an unjust decision put right.”

Kevin, an Irish champion boxer, died after being repeatedly struck by a vehicle driven by Jackson of Longford Road, Coventry, England.

Jackson, (31), denied Mr Sheehy’s murder but admitted manslaughter, and was jailed for life in December 2021 after a jury at the Central Criminal Court unanimously rejected his defence of provocation.

Following his conviction Jackson, who is aged in his early 30s, successfully applied to the Justice Minister for a transfer from Ireland so he can serve out his sentence in an English prison.

“This was a position that we were put into that we never wanted to be in,” Tracey added, about her successful appeal.

“And I hope that it will never happen to another family. Thanks to Sunday World there was so much coverage that I was able to get the word out there.

“But I won’t lie to you, it was scary. It was frightening at the time. We were being advised that it could go to more than €80,000 because for some reason they were arguing that I would have to pay for Logan Jackson, the man who murdered my son, his fees, and the minister’s fees.

“I brazened it out. I don’t have that sort of money but I just felt that this was so wrong. I feel like was entitled to be questioning the minister’s decision.

“But it was a comfort to know that I had the support of so many other people from my own city and even further away.

“People were asking me was there a GoFundMe page that they could contribute to.”

“I was scared but I had to be strong for everyone else around me so you can image the relief that we don’t have that having over our heads.

“This time last year we were just finishing up the trial for Christmas and we had so many horrible Christmases before that but now it feels different.

“We’ll keep it cozy, keep it warm, and be grateful that we have a roof over our heads and appreciate the small things.”

Tracey revealed that there may even be a change to the laws, “so that if this happens ever again, it will be put before three judges before it goes to the minister”.

“I’m not sure, it might even be called Kevin’s law, and that would be amazing,” she added.