Court reserves decision on life sentences for two men convicted as teenagers

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The Court of Appeal reserved its decision in two resentencing cases and is expected to rule after Christmas on whether the men should receive life sentences. Both were convicted of murder as teenagers and had been sentenced to life detention with review after 13 years.

The Supreme Court had ruled that courts cannot reserve power to review a child’s sentence and that life sentences for child murder defendants should be imposed only in exceptional cases where their intentions and actions can fairly be equated with an adult’s. The Court of Appeal heard arguments from lawyers for both men and the Director of Public Prosecutions before reserving judgment.