A 21-year-old man who set out to kill his father after his mother was raped will be given the chance of probation if he continues to stay out of trouble.
The Ballymun man appeared in Dublin District Court last June after he went out on two successive nights armed with weapons looking for his father. His mother did not know who raped her because she had been under the influence of drink and drugs, but the defendant believed his father was responsible. The court was also told the son was one of five children who had been physically abused by their father.
Garda Colm Heaney had told the court the defendant was armed with a knife and baseball bat on May 13th when he called to two flats in Ballymun looking for his father. The following night he was found outside his mother's house carrying two swords and was remanded in custody until the court released him on bail for a probation report.
Judge Terence Finn said the defendant might have been justified in the feelings of "anger and frustration" he felt at the time and indicated that if he continued to stay out of trouble he would apply probation without recording a conviction.
He remanded the defendant on continuing bail to May 5th.