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'Vulnerable person' repeatedly cut with knife while out shopping for mother

Date
2020-06-24
Stage
Sentence
Primary locality
Dublin
County
Dublin

Summary

Patrick Byrne, 23, pleaded guilty to attempted robbery and assault with a knife in Clondalkin on 9 October 2018. Byrne approached David Cleary, 41, who was visiting his mother, and demanded money. When Cleary refused, Byrne attacked him with a knife, kicking him to the ground and inflicting cuts to his back, index finger and eye. Cleary sustained significant visual impairment from the eye injury. Byrne, who has 21 prior convictions including robbery and assault, was sentenced to six‑and‑a‑half years' imprisonment, with the final 18 months suspended on strict conditions. The sentence will run concurrently with the five‑year term he is currently serving for other offences, including possession of drugs. The judge noted Byrne's history of addiction and the victim's status as a vulnerable person. The case was heard in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: 'Vulnerable person' repeatedly cut with knife while out shopping for mother. Charges or matters: attempted robbery on a street in Clondalkin on October 9, 2018. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

Why: Garda Barry O'Shea told Fiona McGowan BL, prosecuting, that on the date in question, then 41-year-old man David Cleary had left the city centre hostel in which he was residing in order to visit his mother in the Clondalkin area. CNI source report

Case subjects

Patrick Byrne

Defendant

Charges: attempted robbery on a street in Clondalkin on October 9, 2018 (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: He is currently serving a five-year sentence with the final two years suspended for offences including possession of drugs. She sentenced Byrne to six-and-a-half years imprisonment, but suspended the final 18 months of the sentence on strict conditions.

Places mentioned

Residence
Court Venue
  • Dublin
  • Dublin Circuit Criminal Court

Topics

Drugs Stage Sentence Theft Violent Crime

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Read the original CNI report

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