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The Journal
04-06-2025
- General
- The Journal
Tributes paid to 'remarkable' US death row exoneree killed in Galway house fire
TRIBUTES ARE BEING paid to exonerated former US death row inmate Sonia 'Sunny' Jacobs after her death in a house fire in Galway yesterday aged 78. Jacobs' remains were found in a bungalow near Casla in Gleann Mhic Muireann in Connemara after emergency services were first alerted to the fire at 6:19am yesterday morning. Her carer, a man in his 30s called Kevin Kelly, was also found dead in the property. Friends and colleagues have been paying tribute to the 'fierce advocate for justice' in the wake of the tragic incident. Dr Edward Mathews, director of the Irish Innocence Project at Griffith College, said: 'She was a life long campaigner for human rights and the abolition of the death penalty, speaking all over the world of how the death penalty invariably kills the innocent and debases the whole of humanity.' 'Despite all, Sunny smiled. Oh, how she smiled,' said friend Ruairí McKiernan. The Sunny Center The Sunny Center Sunny was placed on death row at the age of 28, along with her partner Jesse Tafero, after they were wrongfully convicted of the murders of two police officers. In Florida in 1976, she was in a car with Jesse and her two children, aged 9 years and 10 months, when she became caught up in a fatal shooting incident at a rest stop, which turned out to have been committed by Walter Rhodes, a passenger in the back seat, who later confessed to the murders. When she was freed in 1992, her son Eric had become a married father while her daughter Christina was 16 years old. Jesse was executed by the electric chair while Jacobs was in confinement, and her parents – who had been caring for her children – died together in a plane crash. Advertisement After her release, she campaigned for the abolition of the death penalty, and set up the Sunny Healing Centre with her husband Peter Pringle where they offered a space for healing and respite to individuals who suffered trauma due to miscarriages of justice. The couple met after he attended a talk she gave about her experiences. He had also been sentenced to death before being exonerated. 'Fierce advocate for justice' The Sunny Healing Centre paid an emotional tribute to the woman who spent 17 years in prison for a crime she did not commit. 'By now, many of you have heard the news about Sunny. For those who have not, it is with great sorrow that I report that Sunny has passed,' the centre wrote in a message on its website. 'Sunny was a fierce advocate for justice and a guiding light for many. As someone who survived wrongful conviction – including five years in solitary confinement under a sentence of death, and 17 years of imprisonment total – she knew the difficulties of incarceration and the struggle to regain one' s footing after being exonerated and released.' Jacobs and Peter established The Sunny Center to help others like them to rebuild their lives after release from prison. 'Together, they brought many exonerees to the center in Ireland to help them process their trauma and move forward to the next steps of their healing. During and after the pandemic, they continued to support and counsel exonerees remotely by video and phone. 'After Peter's passing in 2022, Sunny continued the work of The Sunny Center. She hosted exonerees and started a training program for those who wanted to carry forward her vision to establish similar centers for exonerees within their communities.' 'Remarkable woman' Ruairí McKiernan, a friend of Jacobs, posted a tribute to her, saying she 'had lessons for the world'. 'Through yoga, meditation, and true Bodhisattva warriorship, this remarkable woman went on to travel the world (in her wheelchair) advocating against the death penalty, including recent talks in Paris and Strasbourg,' McKiernan wrote. 'It's worth highlighting that, right until the end – and with every little means – Sunny… worked tirelessly: daily international phone calls, Zoom meetings, talks, podcasts [and] media and events, including fundraising for the Sunny Foundation in the US. He added: 'Sunny, we are grateful to have known you. Thank you, Sunny, for shining your tremendous light. Your spirit will live on, strong and true. With love to her children and grandchildren, and to all who knew and loved her.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Examiner
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Culture That Made Me: Izzy Showbizzy of 96FM picks her touchstones
Born in 1992, Isabel Bartak-Healy, aka Izzy Showbizzy, grew up in Tivoli, Cork. She studied Media and Journalism in Griffith College, Cork. She got a job with Cork's Red FM in 2012, working as an entertainment correspondent and host. In 2019, she became the first woman to win gold for DJ of the Year at the IMRO radio awards. In 2024, she joined Cork's 96FM where she presents The Big Drive Home with Izzy Showbizzy, weekdays 4-8pm. Pink's music Early teens, I was very into vintage Pink and everything she was going through in that time of her life. She had so much angst in her music. She was always going through something. As a bit of a moody teenager, I related to that. I prefer her early music, not the stuff she's producing now. Music mix Listening to music depends on my mood. I'm going to be a house music girl for life. If I'm out walking the dog and I need to do a 5K in a certain amount of time, I might put on Fisher. For a slower-pace walk, I might put on something like Bombay Bicycle Club, Alt-J. And I love Irish music. I'm mad for Hozier. He's amazing, one of my go-to artists for, say, a slow Sunday drive to Kinsale. Annie Mac Having DJed in a lot of clubs over the years, I'm always looking for inspiration. From an Irish perspective, Annie Mac stands out. Annie Mac did so much for Irish DJs. She's absolutely amazing. Avicii Avicii was a music producer and DJ, an incredible artist. He passed away young. His real name was Tim Bergling. His work ethic was crazy. He had so many artists wanting to collaborate with him and make beats for him. It's incredible the way people's brains can work like that – at that level, to be born with such an amazing gift and creative talent. There's a documentary on Netflix about him. I'm interested to learn more about him. The Diary of a CEO I enjoy Steven Bartlett's The Diary of a CEO podcast. I'm a fan of deep chats and getting to the bottom of a person's personality and seeing them in a different light. For instance, he interviewed Jimmy Carr, the comedian, known for being a very funny man, but I loved hearing him on that podcast because you heard about how intelligent he is. Isabel Bartak-Healy: "I enjoy Steven Bartlett's The Diary of a CEO podcast. I'm a fan of deep chats and getting to the bottom of a person's personality and seeing them in a different light." You saw him in a different light, in the sense he really thinks about life, about how to get the most out of it. I loved hearing about his positive outlook and how he applies that to his career, his ambitions, his mental health. I found it fascinating. Solomun I went to see Solomun in Ibiza last summer. That was pretty cool. It was an outside gig. A hot afternoon – the sun was splitting stones. Daytime gigs are often better. There was a great crowd there. I was with one of my best friends. We went on a five-day trip to the island. It was gorgeous. I ended up making friends with everyone in the crowd – just dancing and everyone's in good form. Great vibes, great fun. Talos Recently, Eoin French, who performed as Talos, passed away. He was an incredibly nice man and an amazing singer with one of the most incredible voices. I have been a massive fan of Talos for a number of years. I always loved seeing him live. It seemed like it was always around Christmas he did a gig in St Luke's, Cork. Going to see him there, with its acoustics, and his voice just beaming through in the former church. Unforgettable. The tribute on the Tommy Tiernan Show to him recently was beautiful. I'm talking goosebumps-on-the-back-of-your-neck tribute. An amazing Irish singer-songwriter. Live at the Marquee We're blessed with Live at the Marquee every summer in Cork's Virgin Media Park. I've seen so many great gigs at it. It's hard to pin-point one. I went to see Sugababes and Tom Odell there last year. It's great to have it on your doorstep. I grew up around it. Before I went into radio, I worked in the carpark, along with one of my two close friends at the time, so we could get into all the gigs afterwards for free, after taking people's money for parking! Holy Cow I started DJing in a place called the Holy Cow, on Hanover St. in Cork, years ago. I loved the night there because all of my friends were DJing there. It was great when you were in your twenties and growing up around music. We had similar tastes in music. I loved seeing other local DJs – like Stevie G, a legend; Ed Callanan, who taught me how to DJ a long time ago – doing their sets, and wanting to learn more from them. Laura Whitmore I admired Laura Whitmore as a TV presenter and her fantastic work ethic growing up. I love the way she handles everything that's thrown at her. Laura Whitmore: "I admired Laura Whitmore as a TV presenter and her fantastic work ethic growing up." I admire how she navigates herself through a world that is criticising her, and also how she kept her love life private, but public at the same time. Presenting, say, Love Island: After Sun – critics didn't think she was a right fit for the show – and how she dealt with the criticism on that. Caroline Flack I always loved watching the late Caroline Flack. I loved her TV presenting ability and how comfortable she seemed to be in front of the camera. It seemed like she was just being herself. I take a lot of that on board when I'm on air myself on the radio. I always think it's about putting a smile on people's faces and being a friendly bubbly voice for the people of Cork. I love to see how other people have done that over the years. Grey's Anatomy My friends and I have a running joke about rewatching Grey's Anatomy because it's quite a heavy show: 'Check in on your friends if they're rewatching Grey's Anatomy from the start.' I love Shonda Rhimes, the woman that wrote that show. Gary Oldman in Slow Horses. She's incredibly successful. She's done Bridgerton. I interviewed her on the red carpet for the première of one of her shows in the UK. She is a force – to have a brain that can write so many successful TV shows is incredible. She's amazing. Slow Horses Slow Horses is some of the best TV I've watched in a long time. It's about rejected MI5 agents that have messed up in their job and are sent to a last-chance house. They're rejects and they want to solve cases and take on the world and their bosses basically saying, 'Well, you're rejects. How do you think you're gonna crack this case?' It's very entertaining. Gary Oldman is in it. His character is hilarious. Colleen Hoover Colleen Hoover is an author I'm drawn to. She's a fiction writer. I've read a lot of her books. There's a romance element to them. I always think it's nice to switch off, particularly on holidays, with a good book. I feel with her books I end up going into another universe with the characters she's created. I get really drawn into every storyline of her books.
