Ian Harman sentenced to 10 years for manslaughter, with final two years suspended

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

Ian Harman (50) was sentenced to 10 years for manslaughter, with the final two years suspended, by Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan on 13 October 2014. The proceedings were reported on 13 October 2014.

Harman was re-arraigned before the Central Criminal Court on the eighth day of his trial. He pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty of manslaughter. The report described the trial as taking place the previous July.

Paddy McCarthy SC, prosecuting, told the court that the plea was acceptable to the Director of Public Prosecutions under Section 6 of the Criminal Law Insanity Act. The provision permits a finding of manslaughter rather than murder on grounds of diminished responsibility.

Michael Treanor (82) was killed at Cavan General Hospital’s psychiatric unit in Lisdarn, Co Cavan, on 27 June 2011. The court heard that Harman got onto Mr Treanor’s bed and used a belt and a pillow to kill him.

The sentence was backdated to 28 June 2011 for time spent in custody. The judge cited Harman’s remorse, guilty plea, admission at the start of the trial that he killed Mr Treanor, and cooperation with the garda investigation and psychiatrists.

Mr Justice Sheehan said Harman had been suffering from a mental disorder at the time of the offence and stressed the court’s duty to protect the public. He also ordered Harman to cooperate with an integrated sentence management programme in prison and undergo two years’ post-release supervision.