Courts / Kildare / Report

Prison "inevitable" for father-of-five who assaulted man who later died

Date
2017-12-11

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Naas

County
Kildare

Summary

In a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court hearing, Paul Gill, a 37‑year‑old construction worker, pleaded guilty to assaulting Patrick "Patsy" Kelly, 58, and Martin Curtis on 22 August 2015. Gill admitted punching Kelly up to five times, dragging him to the road and kicking him once in the head, and then attacking Curtis when he arrived. Emergency services performed CPR on Kelly, who later died. A post‑mortem found Kelly died of heart disease, with the assault's minor trauma contributing. Gill had eight prior convictions, including a 2000 assault. He was acquitted of manslaughter after a six‑day trial. The judge remanded him on bail and warned that a custodial element was inevitable, with sentencing scheduled for 18 December. The case was transferred to Dublin due to Kelly's prominence in Naas. The hearing included victim impact statements and defence mitigation arguments. The court did not yet impose a sentence.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Prison "inevitable" for father-of-five who assaulted man who later died. Charges or matters: assaulting the deceased Patrick "Patsy" Kelly (58) and his former neighbour, Martin Curtis, on August 22, 2015; unlawfully killing Mr Kelly during the same incident and was acquitted of manslaughter after a six-day trial last month. Procedural stage: sentence. Findings: Acquitted

When:

August 22, 2015 Incident
Monday, December 18 Other
Christmas Other
2017-12-11 Publication

Why: He agreed that Gill had vague recollection of what had happened because he'd been drinking but that he had answered all questions and admitted the assaults. CNI source report

Case subjects

Paul Gill

Applicant

Charges: assaulting the deceased Patrick "Patsy" Kelly (58) and his former neighbour, Martin Curtis, on August 22, 2015; unlawfully killing Mr Kelly during the same incident and was acquitted of manslaughter after a six-day trial last month (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Finding: Acquitted

Outcome: Acquitted; Judge Greally remanded Gill on continuing bail and put the matter back for sentence to next Monday.; Judge Greally remanded Gill on continuing bail and put the matter back for sentence to next Monday.