Early hearing fixed for State’s appeal against teenager’s attempted murder sentence

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

The State has been granted an early hearing for its appeal against a teenage boy’s attempted murder sentence, which it argues is unduly lenient. The Court of Appeal fixed the hearing for 14 May 2020.

The boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, pleaded guilty to attempted murder. In November 2019 he was sentenced to 11 years’ detention, with a review to commence on 1 January 2023.

The report said he had been in custody since December 2017, when he lured Stephanie Ng to an isolated area at the Sea Front, Queen’s Road, Dun Laoghaire. He had met her on the Whisper social media app, where he pretended to be 19.

He was 15 when he attacked Ms Ng during their first face-to-face meeting. After suggesting a selfie by the water’s edge, he grabbed her from behind, choked her unconscious and slashed her neck with a knife.

At a remote Court of Appeal hearing, Anne-Marie Lawlor SC said the Director of Public Prosecutions was applying for an early date and that the teenager’s lawyers positively supported the application. Court of Appeal President Mr Justice George Birmingham fixed the hearing for 14 May. Niall Nolan BL, for the teenager, said he understood a video link from Oberstown Children Detention Campus was feasible.