A Leaving Cert student who stabbed his friend through the heart during a drink-fuelled row over music was jailed for eight years by the Central Criminal Court yesterday.
James Keenan (20), of Bayside Square East, Bayside, Dublin had earlier pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty of the manslaughter of Jonathon Durran (18), Dublin Road, Sutton, on February 24th, 2002.
At the sentencing hearing yesterday, the court heard that Keenan was a model young man who had never come to the notice of the gardaí previously.
Det Sgt Gary Kelly, Howth, told the court that on the night of the killing Keenan, Mr Durran and another friend, Mr Gerard Browne, were out drinking at the Sheaf of Wheat pub.
They consumed five pints each and a vodka and Redbull, and got a taxi back to Keenan's house where they had some gin and 7-up.
Det Sgt Kelly said that the accused's mother and stepfather were on their way into town, and the three friends went up to Keenan's bedroom.
A row developed over the type of music being played and it continued in the kitchen.
The deceased picked up a pot and hit the accused over the head. Mr Browne tried to separate them but was hit from behind and fell to the ground.
Det Sgt Kelly said Keenan told gardaí during questioning that he picked up a knife from an open drawer but did not intend to use it. He wanted Mr Durran to "back off".
The court heard that Keenan thrust the knife into Mr Durran's chest who then fell face down onto the knife.
The evidence was that it pierced his heart and lungs, killing him instantly. Det Sgt Kelly said Keenan told him he never intended to kill Jonathon. "He kept saying, 'he's my mate, my friend'."
Mr Erwan Mill-Arden SC, defending, told the court that Keenan was a "genuinely remorseful" young man who was "absolutely shattered" by what happened.
He was a "model young man" before and since the killing. The court heard that the deceased's parents accepted that Keenan had not intended to kill their son.
Sentencing him to eight years imprisonment, Mr Justice Carney said while he accepted the non-intentional nature of the killing and the accused's previous good record, he had to take into account the gravity of what he termed "these knife cases".