Two Kerry brothers have each been sentenced to 14 years in prison for the manslaughter of a 30-year-old man they found in bed with the younger brother’s ex-girlfriend.
Mr Justice Barry White told Shane O'Riordan (19) and Gerard O'Riordan (28), of Arbutus Grove, Killarney that it was inevitable from their violent past that one or both of them would end up killing.
The brothers were cleared last month of murdering James Brazier - also known as 'English Jim' - in Killarney on April 15th 2007, but were found guilty of his manslaughter.
The Central Criminal Court had heard that the father-of-three died from multiple stab wounds.
Before sentencing, Mr Justice White recalled the circumstances in which Mr Brazier died, with the brothers attending the home of Shane O'Riordan's former girlfriend in the early hours of April 15th.
The judge noted that the 15-year-old girl had been going out with Shane O'Riordan for several months until a week earlier, when she had ended the relationship. The night before the killing she had been drinking with her mother and Mr Brazier in Killarney.
"You went straight to the room of (the 15-year-old) and found her lying asleep on a single bed beside James Brazier, a man twice her age," said the judge.
"You, Gerard, commenced a savage assault on Mr Brazier. You, Shane, joined in that assault with a knife you found, stabbing Mr Brazier 12 times," he continued. "Notwithstanding the fact that Mr Brazier had been stabbed 12 times, you, Gerard continued your assault, dragging him from the bed and assaulting him with a chair."
The judge noted that the brothers had also been out the night before the killing and had heard of the teenaged girl's movements. After failing to reach her by phone around 2am, Shane O'Riordan decided to go to her house.
"You, Gerard, determined to go with him, notwithstanding attempts to dissuade you as it was nothing to do with you," remarked Mr Justice White. "I'm strongly suspicious that you had ulterior motives in going to the house."
The judge said both brothers had a history of violence, having heard that Shane O'Riordan had 11 previous convictions, including for assault, while Gerard O'Riordan had 35 previous convictions, including for assault causing harm.
"It seems to me almost inevitable that one or other or both of you would end up killing someone," he added.
The judge said that this killing lay in the middle of the higher end of seriousness for manslaughter offences, and that the appropriate sentence was 14 years before taking their personal circumstances into account.
"Neither of you proffered a plea of manslaughter before this trial," he noted.
He said he had a letter of remorse from the brothers, but that he had 'grave misgivings' regarding the letter in Gerard O'Riordan's case. However, assuming the remorse to be real, he suspended the final 18 months of his sentence.