Teenage boy pleads guilty to murder of Cork student at house party
A TEENAGE boy has admitted murdering 20-year-old college student Cameron Blair in Co. Cork earlier this year.
The 17-year-old boy, who can not be named because he is a minor, was arraigned before the Central Criminal Court yesterday.
He was charged with murdering Mr Blair on Bandon Road in Cork city on January 16 last.
Dressed in a grey shirt and black trousers, he stood and pleaded guilty to the offence.
Mr Blair was a native of Ballinascarthy in west Cork and a second-year chemical engineering student at Cork Institute of Technology.
He died at Cork University Hospital on January 16 after being stabbed in the neck while attending a student party.
Brendan Grehan SC, defending, said his client was present in court with his father and two of his aunts.
Following the boy’s arraignment, Anne Rowland SC for the
Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) asked the court to remand the accused in custody to Oberstown Children Detention Centre and direct the preparation of a probation report.
He can only be remanded in custody for 28 days and these are ‘uncertain times’, she added.
Ms Rowland asked for liberty to mention the matter between now and the next date, and said this may have to be done by video link.
Mr Grehan said he did not think any psychiatric issues arose in the case but thought it would be useful to have a psychological report.
Mr Justice Paul McDermott said he was conscious of the ‘time factor’ involved and put the matter in for April 3 at 2pm. Victim impact evidence will also be heard on that date.
Ms Rowland said the deceased’s family were anxious that the sentence hearing be dealt with in
Cork. In reply, Mr Grehan said in any other circumstances there would be no difficulty, but pointed out that the Central Criminal Court has stopped hearings in Cork.
The judge agreed with the defence barrister and said it was a ‘rapidly moving’ situation and a colleague had been due to travel to Cork, but ‘all of these plans had been set aside by reason of the Government’s direction’. The matter would take place in the Central Criminal Court in Dublin, he explained.
Mr Justice McDermott directed that the boy be detained at Oberstown Children Detention Centre until April 3, when a psychological assessment and probation report will be made available to the court.