‘Got away with murder’: Man faces trial over 2014 death of Kirra-Lea McLoughlin

October 21, 2026 — 4:17pm

A man accused of killing his partner told a new girlfriend he felt guilty about the death after going into a violent rage over claims she had slept with a teenage neighbour, a court has heard.

Kirra-Lea McLoughlin, 27, died in July 2014 after an argument with her partner Paul Alan McDonald, who is accused of manslaughter.

For much of McDonald’s first day of trial in the Supreme Court in Brisbane on Wednesday, he sat looking down, at times shaking his head slightly at some of the evidence being heard.

On the Friday night before her death in hospital, McLoughlin fought with McDonald’s sister, Tamiqua McDonald, in her Wolvi home, near Gympie, north of Brisbane.

The dispute began with claims McLoughlin was having a relationship with a 17-year-old neighbour, the court heard, then escalated.

Key evidence in the prosecution case is that four years after McLoughlin’s death, Paul McDonald told a new girlfriend, Jade Vandenberg, about the events of that night.

Vandenberg has since died, but had told police McDonald had claimed he felt guilty for letting his sister feel responsible.

Crown Prosecutor David Nardone told the court McDonald confided in Vandenberg, saying he had gone into a violent rage before grabbing McLoughlin by the shoulders.

“He told Ms Vandenberg that he was upset with [McLoughlin] for having had sex with the neighbour, that he became violent, banging and shaking her head into the floor or a wall,” Nardone said.

Vandenberg sent a message to McDonald’s sister, the court heard, saying the accused said he “kept smashing her head into the floor and panicked when she wouldn’t wake up and tried putting her in the shower”.

Years later, in a phone call with his mother discussing his conversations with Vandenberg, McDonald said he feared she would dob him in, Nardone said.

McDonald told Vandenberg he and McLoughlin ended up “sorting it out” and had sex that night, the court heard.

Nardone said Vandenberg described McDonald “as having got away with murder”.

The accused told his mother it was Vandenberg’s word against his, and he had done “nothing wrong”, the court heard.

On the Friday night, neighbours reported hearing yelling and banging from the home, Nardone said.

Tamiqua McDonald testified that she had heard the pair talking about McLoughlin’s relationship with the 17-year-old neighbour, with McDonald wanting a lie detector test.

She said the couple got into an argument, with McLoughlin hitting her brother in the face.

McLoughlin threw a glass at the back of Tamiqua’s head after she intervened, she told the court. She then punched McLoughlin in the face, causing her to fall.

“She was just yelling she was going to kill me,” she said.

The court heard McDonald was trying to defuse the situation when McLoughlin grabbed a baseball bat and went to swing at him. Tamiqua intervened, throwing the bat off the veranda.

Another member of the family also intervened, throwing red paint, causing both McDonald and McLoughlin to slip. Several people left the property, with McLoughlin staying at the house.

Later that evening, about 11pm, she was heard yelling in the background of one of McDonald’s calls.

At 2.46am the next day, a call was made from the house to 13HEALTH, which appeared to be a hang-up call. Another call was also made to another health line for 36 seconds, but the content of the calls were not known, the court heard.

About 1pm, McDonald phoned his brother telling him McLoughlin was unresponsive. The brother advised calling 13HEALTH.

At 2.06pm, McDonald called the health line, explaining that McLoughlin had taken more than 20 pills.

McDonald called Triple Zero, and McLoughlin was rushed to hospital, where medical teams found she had more than 100 bruises, and a spongy area on her scalp.

She was airlifted to the Gold Coast for treatment, where it was determined she had suffered a severe brain injury.  Medical tests did not show signs of an overdose.

McLoughlin died the following day, on Sunday July 18.

The judge-alone trial before Justice Peter Davis continues.

Cloe Read is the crime and court reporter at Brisbane Times.Connect via X or email.

From our partners