This article is from page 12 of the 2006-02-21 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 12 JPG
TWO Kilrush brothers who attacked two men with a hurley have been handed suspended jail sentences after paying €5,000 each in compensation to their victims.
Anthony (26) and Joseph (23) Kelly, Crawford St. Kilrush, assaulted two men in Kilrush on April 11, 2004.
One of the victims had to have 15 staples put into his head and the other had 11 staples put into the back of his head as a result of the assault, Ennis Circuit Court heard.
One of them told a previous sitting of the court, last November, that he had been on disability allowance since the assault.
At that sitting, the Kelly brothers pleaded guilty to the assault. On that occasion the court heard from gardaí, who said it was important that the two Kellys didn’t live in Kilrush.
“There are still problems with the situation in Kilrush and it is important that the two Kellys don’t live there.
“If they did, they would get dragged back into this feud,” Det Sgt David Sheedy told the court on that occasion.
In court last week, Judge Carroll Moran was told that the Kellys had paid €5,000 each in compensation, which was given to the injured men’s solicitor.
Counsel for the State, Stephen Coughlan, said that at the initial hearing, the pair were told not return to Kilrush and remain in Cork, where they had lived since last April.
“Gardaí in Kilrush have a concern that the two do not return to Kilrush,” said Mr Coughlan.
The court heard that all of the bail terms had been adhered to by the two accused men.
Judge Moran said the ban on the two men from entering Kilrush could not last forever. Mr Coughlan suggested, in response, that the two be bound over to the peace for a period of two years.
He said, “This was a nasty assault but they have paid compensation.”
He imposed jail terms of two years on both, suspended for two years and ordered both to keep the peace for that time.
He ordered them to stay out of Kilrush and they must notify the garda authorities if they plan to return there.