Man left with serious injuries after bottle was used in attack
The defendant pleaded guilty at Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court.
A Ballina man still bears scars following an assault in a housing estate.
Stephen Lawrence, aged 23, of Cloonislaun, Ballina, pleaded guilty at Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court to assault causing harm.
His victim, Oisin McCarron, aged 22, of Cluain na Ri, Ballina sustained cuts to his neck, chin, and face. He still bears scars following the 2021 assault.
Det Gda Patrick Lynn told the court that on April 3, 2021, at approximately 11.45, Gardaí responded to an alleged stabbing at Greenhills, Ballina.
When they arrived on the scene, McCarron was lying on the ground being tended to by paramedics. Gardaí noted a large cut to his chin and lower face.
When interviewed by officers, Mr McCarron said he and a group of friends had been drinking in the Greenhills estate. An altercation broke out between the injured party and Lawrence.
Mr McCarron said punches were thrown by both men and it was only when he turned to walk away that he realised he had received cuts to his face and stomach.
Gardaí found Lawrence in the rear of a car close to his home. There was blood on his hands, face and clothing. He told officers he had been in a fight with another man.
Lawrence was arrested and detained but injuries he sustained had to be tended to before he could be interviewed.
He was interviewed three times and made various admissions. At one stage he said he was holding a green glass bottle in his right hand and the bottle could have broken. In the third interview, he stated that he threw a bottle on the ground and picked up another empty one before the fight. He accepted he picked up the bottle to use as a weapon.
Mr McCarron suffered multiple lacerations to the left side of his cheek, ear, chin and neck. A victim impact statement was read into the court.
“What happened to me changed everything,” said Mr McCarron.
He said he feared for his life and the emotional and physical toll “continues to haunt every part of my daily existence".
“The scars on my face and neck are not just skin deep. They are daily reminders of a moment that nearly ended everything,” Mr McCarron added.
He said he suffers from nightmare and panic attacks and requires couselling for PTSD following the attack.
Mr McCarron said he often feels judged for the scarring that is on his face and neck. He showed Judge Eoin Garavan the scars that remain.
Lawrence has no previous convictions and has been in custody on this matter since September 13, 2024. He had €5,000 in court as a token of his remorse and he also apologised for his actions in court.
Senior counsel, Colm Smyth, representing Lawrence, said his client had been drinking heavily on the night of the assault. He said the complainant told GardaÍ that he had been “winding him (Lawrence) up".
Mr Smyth read a statement from a witness who did not give evidence in court.
The witness said he saw Lawrence throw a bottle which bounced off a seat and then struck Mr McCarron in the face.
The barrister said it was “hard to understand what really happened here". Det Gda Lynn agreed with this assessment.
Judge Garavan said the circumstances of the assault were “somewhat vague and opaque" but there appeared to be some level of provocation following “jibing” between the men.
“Joshing turned to violence,” said the judge.
Judge Garavan imposed a jail sentence of two years and three months. However, he decided to suspend 11 months of that term, leaving a sentence of one year and four months.
The sentence was backdated to September 13, 2024, to reflect time already spent in custody.
