Musician Finbarr Lehane died after single punch from Kanturk man Jonathan O’Sullivan
NORTH Cork family have spoken of their shock after a judge decided to fully suspended a three year jail sentence on a 29 year old man convicted of the manslaughter of their father in a single punch assault in Kanturk over two years ago.
The family of musician, Finbarr Lehane (65) from Glen South, Banteer broke down in tears when Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin announced that he believed the appropriate sentence for Jonathan O’Sullivan (29) was three years in jail which he said he would suspend in full.
Afterwards, one of Mr Lehane’s daughters told The Neil Prendeville Show on Cork’s Red FM in a statement that the family was shocked by the leniency of the sentence which came after a traumatic time for them, having to watch CCTV footage during the trial of their father being fatally assaulted.
“It’s been a tough two and a half years waiting for this and the outcome this morning was a shock to us all. The pain and suffering Dad endured was unbearable to watch at times. We had to watch in court the CCTV of him being punched and given CPR and listen to damage that was caused.
“The fellow in the previous case got two years for growing weed (a case which Judge Ó Donnabháin dealt with prior to sentencing O’Sullivan) and a fellow who kills my dad gets away. It just doesn’t make sense,” said Ms Lehane, adding that the family was now appealing for privacy.
The accused, Jonathan O’Sullivan from Kanturk but living at Birchfield Park, Goatstown, Dublin had pleaded not guilty to the manslaughter of Mr Lehane at the Stand Bar, The Square, Kanturk on October 23/24, 2016 but was convicted by a jury at Cork Circuit Criminal Court earlier this month.
Det Garda Padraig Reddington told the sentencing hearing how Mr O’Sullivan had shown some hostility towards Mr Lehane and staff were urging him to leave Mr Lehane alone outside the bar when he suddenly threw one punch, hitting Mr Lehane in the face and knocking him back so he hit his head off the ground.
Mr Lehane was knocked unconsciousness and taken to Cork University Hospital where he died some two weeks later on November 7, said Det Garda Reddington, adding that Mr O’Sullivan presented himself at Kanturk Garda Station the morning after the assault.
Det Garda Reddington agreed with defence counsel, Mary Rose Gearty SC, that Mr O’Sullivan, a Business Services Engineer working with a firm in Kildare, had expressed concern for Mr Lehane and expressed his remorse over his actions before Mr Lehane passed away at CUH.
Mr O’Sullivan, who had no previous convictions and had not come to garda attention since the incident, had offered a plea of assault but this was rejected by the jury who opted instead after three hours and 41 minutes of deliberation to convict him by a majority 11-1 of the more serious manslaughter charge.
During the trial, the jury heard that Mr O’Sullivan told gardaí that Mr Lehane had been “talking rameis” into his ear at the counter of the bar. “I decided to go out the back. I don’t know what happened. I just drew a punch,” said Mr O’Sullivan when interviewed by Det Garda Anthony Daly.
The jury, who were shown CCTV footage of the assault, also heard evidence from witness, Liz Angland who was working in the bar on the night in question. “He (Mr Lehane) hit the ground with an unmerciful crack,” Ms Angland told garda in a witness statement.
Opening the prosecution case, barrister Imelda Kelly BL had told the jury, that both Mr O’Sullivan and Mr Lehane had consumed large amount of alcohol on the day in question, leading up to the incident late on October 23rd and the jury would hear that “alcohol is certainly a feature of this case”.
She had also acknowledged that the cause of Mr Lehane’s death was complicated as they would gather from the medical evidence. “I am not under obligation to prove the punch was the sole cause of death, I must show it was a real and substantial cause,” said Ms Kelly.
Assistant State Pathologist, Dr Margaret Bolster under cross-examination by defence counsel, Mary Rose Gearty SC, agreed she did not find a single mark on Mr Lehane’s face at post-mortem and she confirmed his medical notes made no reference to any mark on his face when he was admitted to hospital.
Ms Gearty SC in her summing-up had said that obviously the most terrible consequences of O’Sullivan’s actions were for the late Mr Lehane and his relatives but the issue the jury had to decide was whether the blow struck by O’Sullivan was objectively dangerous.
“The single most important factor is, do you have a doubt about whether it was objectively dangerous? What force was used to strike the blow? He left him without a mark. That must leave you at least with a reasonable doubt,” she said.
And Ms Gearty reminded the jury how upset Mr O’Sullivan was when he gave evidence where he stated that what happened had horrendous consequences for everybody and how he wept with remorse after presenting himself to gardai just a day after the incident and before Mr Lehane died.
Mr Lehane’s daughter, Catherine Lehane, read out a Victim Impact Statement at last week’s sentencing hearing on behalf of the family in which she told of how their lives had been changed irrevocably on October 24, 2016, when they received a phone call, informing them of the incident.
“We rushed to Cork University Hospital and nothing could have
It’s been a tough two and a half years waiting for this and the outcomethismorning was a shock to us all. The pain and suffering Dad endured was unbearable to watch attimes.
what they believed was a lack of remorse shown by O’Sullivan.
“We know we are not the only victims of this crime. We recognise that other families are suffering too and we feel for every other person affected… his sentence is little consolation to us as we have to visit our dad’s grave, however, it will bring closure of a minor degree to our family.”
Pleading for leniency for Mr O’Sullivan, Ms Gearty pointed out that he had previously been of good character prior to this incident, having never come