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Mentally ill man who slashed teenage boy's face with knife is jailed for five years

Summary

Joseph Byrne, aged 21, was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for assault causing serious harm after he slashed a teenage boy's face with a knife on 4 February 2014. Byrne approached the boy, accusing him of having his X‑Box console, and cut a 10‑cm slash from the boy's ear to his lip, requiring 36 stitches and leaving a likely permanent scar. He pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Byrne had 15 prior convictions, including two for knife possession, and was suffering from schizophrenia and depression at the time of the attack. Judge Desmond Hogan imposed a seven‑year sentence with the final two years suspended, ordering psychiatric care while in custody and 12 months of probation monitoring after release. Byrne also received a suspended one‑year sentence for a burglary committed while on bail, which will run consecutively with the seven‑year term.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Mentally ill man who slashed teenage boy's face with knife is jailed for five years. Charges or matters: assault causing serious harm at Balbutcher Lane, Ballymun on February 4, 2014; burglary at St Joseph's Church, Terenure on August 8, 2014. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• February 4, 2014 Incident
• August 8, 2014 Incident
• 2015-11-09 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Burglary Stage Sentence Violent Crime

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Read the original CNI report