Courts / Galway / Report

State fails in appeal against 4.5-year sentence for two 'life changing' attacks

Date
2022-07-21

Stage
Appeal

Primary locality
Galway

County
Galway

Summary

In a Court of Appeal hearing on 21 July 2022, the State's appeal to increase the jail term for David Bannerton was dismissed. Bannerton, aged 47, had been convicted of two separate assaults in June 2016 in Galway city centre. The first assault, against a 70‑year‑old pensioner, resulted in a two‑year jail term following a three‑year headline sentence. The second assault, against a passer‑by who tried to intervene, led to a six‑year sentence with 18 months suspended, after a nine‑year headline sentence. The Court of Appeal upheld the judge's decision, noting that the suspended portion was a legitimate consideration for rehabilitation and that no additional consecutive sentence was warranted. The appeal was refused, and the original sentences were left unchanged. The case highlighted the judge's discretion in balancing punishment with rehabilitation considerations.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: State fails in appeal against 4.5-year sentence for two 'life changing' attacks. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

June 2016 Incident
January 2021 Hearing Or Sentence
June 15, 2016 Incident
2022-07-21 Publication

Case subjects

David Bannerton

Appellant

Outcome: Bannerton (47) was jailed for six years with a further 18 months suspended by Judge Rory McCabe at Galway Circuit Criminal Court in January 2021. For the assault causing harm conviction on the elderly man, Bannerton, of Raheen Oughter, Kilchreest, Loughrea, Co Galway, was jailed for two years after a three-year headline sentence was identified.; Conall MacCarthy BL, for Bannerton, told the appeal court that the sentencing judge was "well-appraised in the nuances" of such cases and that the sentencing hearing took place over three separate days as the judge adjourned matters to consider reports regarding rehabilitation.