A Dublin man was sentenced to life imprisonment at the Central Criminal Court yesterday after being found guilty of murder.
Gerald, or Gerard, Dunne (26), of Rafter's Avenue, Drimnagh, was found guilty of the murder of Mr Liam Thompson (20), of Firhouse, Tallaght, on January 27th, 1999, at Dolphin's Road, Dublin.
The jury took three hours and 15 minutes to reach a unanimous verdict. The jury was told the question they had to decide, should they find Dunne used a knife on Mr Thompson, was whether he "intended to cause serious harm".
Dunne told the court he had been in a street brawl with Mr Thompson and had been given the knife by a friend and urged to "stab the bastard". He said he was in fear of his life, "so I just struck out with what I had in my hand into his side. I just wanted to hurt him. I just wanted him to get off me". Dunne later confessed to gardai he had killed Mr Thompson.
Dunne received a mandatory life sentence.