A man has been jailed for five years for his part in an attack in which a dentist was stabbed in the chest and had his wrist broken by a set of pliers.
Paul Meehan was the ringleader in the assault on Mr James Walsh (50), who was out of work for two months after the attack. Meehan also caused £5,000 damage to Mr Walsh's car, for which he is serving a four-year sentence.
Meehan (25), of Castle Cresent, Clondalkin, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to causing serious harm to Mr Walsh on November 28th, 1997. Alan Maloney, (20), of Forrest Drive, Ringswood Heights, Clondalkin, was jailed for five years in May for his part in the attack.
Judge Kieran O'Connor described Meehan and Maloney's acts as "childish" and "horrific" and said even the worst driver in the world did not deserve to be set upon as Mr Walsh was.
Det Garda George Butler told Mr Des Zaiden, prosecuting, that Mr Walsh was travelling to his daily clinic in Clondalkin when a white van swerved close to his car. Mr Walsh beeped his horn and later stopped to buy a newspaper in a shop near his clinic.
The white van pulled up nearby and Maloney broke Mr Walsh's wrist with a pliers. Meehan then beat him with a pair of crutches and Mr Walsh hit Meehan on the head with the pliers which he grabbed from Maloney. Mr Walsh ran into a shop and tried to defend himself with a brush but Maloney stabbed him in the chest with a screwdriver.
As the attack continued, Meehan set upon Mr Walsh's car, causing £5,000 worth of damage.
Garda Butler said Meehan was the ringleader and was driving the van that followed Mr Walsh's car. Judge O'Connor said Mr Walsh could have been killed if one of Meehan's passengers, Ms Wendy Grimes, had not intervened. He told Meehan he was "a very foolish man" whose crimes had left him with prison sentences and serious physical injuries.