Eight years for manslaughter of homeless man
A 25-year-old Tralee man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for the manslaughter of a homeless father-of-four by stamping on his head with his full body weight.
Brendan O'Connor of Molanee House, Monnavalley, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to killing fellow Kerry man Edward Joseph Clancy (aged 50) on August 15, 2006 on Bridge Street, Tralee.
He had originally pleaded not guilty to Mr Clancy’s killing, but changed his plea to guilty to manslaughter at the opening of his trial for murder in November. He had made no admissions in garda interviews.
The DPP accepted his plea on the grounds of provocation; Mr Clancy, who was rumoured to be HIV positive, spat at him, and there had also been an argument.
Deirdre Murphy SC, prosecuting, said that both men exchanged words outside a pub in the town in the early hours of that day. Mr Clancy spat at O’Connor before crossing the road and moving away.
“Brendan O’Connor followed him,” she said, explaining that further words were exchanged on this 30-yard walk to Bridge Street. There were several witnesses, she added.
Detective Sergeant Fergal Patwell quoted from witness statements that O’Connor caught up with Mr Clancy and grabbed him.
“Brendan O’Connor began punching Edward Joseph Clancy, knocked him to the ground and stamped on his head,” he said.
He said there was no evidence that Mr Clancy resisted or fought with O’Connor.
Ms Murphy said a post-mortem exam found that the base of Mr Clancy’s skull was completely fractured and there was extensive bruising to his head and face.
She said the pathologist described it as a targeted attack to the head, and Mr Clancy was pronounced dead at Tralee Hospital within an hour of the attack.
Det. Sgt Patwell said O’Connor had previous convictions for assault causing harm, drug possession for sale or supply, criminal damage, and public order offences including obstruction.
He agreed with Mr David Goldberg SC, defending, that the deceased had 58 previous convictions including one for stabbing. He also agreed that it was widely believed that Mr Clancy had HIV and that gardaí took precautions when dealing with him.
“It appears there was no fact to it,” he added.
Mr Goldberg said his client deeply regretted the killing and expressed genuine remorse.
“In my submission, the provocation was sufficient to cause this particularly violent reaction,” he said.
However, in sentencing him, Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said he was not taking the AIDS rumour into account because there was no evidence that the accused knew of it or that it was a factor.
Mr Justice McCarthy described Mr Clancy as “one of life’s victims” and said his public order offences did not drain the crime of its seriousness.
“His humanity and life were as real and worthwhile as anyone’s,” he said.
He also said he was not taking O’Connor’s convictions into consideration as they happened so long ago and were not similar. He backdated the sentence to Monday when O’Connor first went into custody.
