Teenager jailed for assault causing harm in Dublin attack

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

A teenager was sentenced to three years, with the final two suspended, for assault causing harm at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 15 February 2019. The attack occurred in a Dublin suburb on 17 July 2016, leaving the victim with a permanent facial scar. The sentence followed the teenager’s guilty plea.

Judge Melanie Greally said the assault had homophobic undertones, although the teenager denied that aspect. The court heard he had 24 previous convictions and that his childhood involved neglect, abuse and repeated care placements.

The judge credited the teenager’s remorse and his age at the time of the offence, when he was 15. She strongly recommended that he be transferred from Mountjoy Prison to Wheatfield Prison because of his age.