A Dublin man was given a five-year suspended sentence in the Central Criminal Court yesterday for the manslaughter of a man in Fairview in 1995.
Charles Moloney (26), of Fairview Strand, had pleaded guilty last November to the manslaughter of Mr James Hurley (48), of Addison Road, Fairview, on January 29th, 1995, at Fairview Avenue.
During a sentencing hearing yesterday, the court was told that at around midnight on the night of his death, the victim became involved in a verbal altercation with a man and his girlfriend outside a pub in Richmond Road, Fairview.
Det Garda John Byrne, of Clontarf, said it appeared that Mr Hurley had then followed this couple. The dead man had been engaged in "mildly aggressive behaviour" in the area earlier that day and had drunk "in the region of 15 to 20 pints".
Moloney was sitting on a fence at the junction with Marino Park when a further verbal altercation ensued between Mr Hurley and himself. In his statement, Moloney said the deceased man had said: "Are you starting a fight, you scumbag?" and had removed his glasses.
A brief confrontation occurred which Moloney described as a "bang, bang situation". He admitted that he kneed Mr Hurley in the groin, hit him a number of times and then kicked him when he was on the ground.
Det Garda Byrne said he had known Moloney since 1991 and saw him as a mild-mannered, quiet and placid character. He had left school at 15 and had been in employment since. He was satisfied Moloney had drunk no more than four pints on the night of the attack and agreed with Mr Eamon Leahy SC, defending, that the accused had not set out that evening looking for trouble.
Mr Leahy asked Mr Justice McCracken to be "as lenient as possible". His client had shown genuine remorse for the attack, which he agreed was unwarranted, and had co-operated fully with gardai.
Mr Justice McCracken said he did not wish to impose a custodial sentence which "would simply ruin your life as well as the deceased man's". He imposed a five-year suspended sentence and bound Moloney to keep the peace.