Dublin man jailed after stabbing left friend with serious injuries

Eimear Dodd

A man who stabbed his friend, causing him serious injuries, has been jailed for three years and three months.

Gerard Baird (39) of Kilbarron Road, Coolock, Dublin 5, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm on October 31st, 2021, at an address in Beaumont, Dublin.

Evidence was heard that Baird was socialising with the injured party, and they had had some drinks.

When Baird was leaving the victim's home with his bike and a can of alcohol, the injured party noticed he had a knife from the apartment.

Baird called him a rat, then stabbed him. The victim tried to calm Baird down and urged him to call an ambulance, then leave.

Baird didn't have a mobile and used the victim's phone to call emergency services. He remained at the scene, and the victim said he was shouting “mad stuff” at him.

The victim thought he wasn't going to survive due to the bleeding. He was stabbed twice in the stomach, once in the chest and once in the neck.

He required surgery, but has made a good recovery, the court was told.

When gardaí arrived, Baird told them that the victim was stabbed after answering the door.

Baird was arrested in March 2022, accepted he was at the property and repeated what he told gardai on the night. He also identified himself on the 999 call recording.

In a victim impact statement, the victim outlined the mental and physical effects of the assault. He said it has taken him a lot of time to get his life back on track, and he is nervous about leaving his home at night.

Baird has 70 previous convictions, including for burglary, assault, public order, and criminal damage, all at the District Court. He has four previous convictions from the United Kingdom, including one from 2015 for grievous bodily harm.

The garda witness agreed with Judge Martin Nolan that Baird appears to have a problem with alcohol.

The garda also agreed with defence counsel that the plea was of value to the prosecution, and Baird has remained out of trouble for the last 12 months.

The court heard that Baird had serious alcohol issues at the time of this incident and was homeless. He has made attempts in the past to deal with his addiction, but has made progress recently in addressing these issues. He is working and now has hostel accommodation.

Counsel said his client is extremely apologetic for his actions, but has a poor recollection of what happened.

He suggested this was out of character for Baird.

Judge Martin Nolan said it appeared Baird had “attacked viciously” the injured party “for no apparent reason”.

He said Baird has a long history of offending and his “principal problem is that he becomes aggressive and angry when drink is taken”.

He said Baird should have known to take steps to address this issue, and the court considered the offence may not have occurred if Baird hadn't been drinking.