Family’s anger that violent teenager was let free to kill
THE FAMILY of a murdered solicitor have expressed their anger that a violent and dangerous teenage offender was out on the streets and free to kill.
The sentencing judge said it was 52-year-old Peter Duncan’s bad luck to bump into Ewan Ireland, then aged 17, when he was trying to get home after a day at work in Newcastle city centre.
Mr Duncan, a much-loved and hard-working father of two boys, and his killer accidentally brushed against each other at a busy entrance to the Eldon Square shopping centre, and Ireland reacted angrily and stabbed his victim in the heart with a screwdriver he had shoplifted minutes before.
Newcastle Crown Court heard Mr Duncan struggled before collapsing near a Greggs outlet, and he could not be saved.
Mr Justice Lavender sentenced Ireland to life with a minimum term of 15 years, saying the sentence would have been longer had he been 18 at the time. The incident happened in August and Ireland turned 18 in October.
Richard Wright QC, prosecuting, said of: “It was plainly an unintended and accidental contact, but the defendant reacted to it by immediately launching an attack upon Peter Duncan.”
At the time Ireland, who had hopes of playing for Newcastle United, was on bail for an offence of affray, was under investigation for a robbery and still subject to a 12-month conditional discharge for a battery offence.
The court heard he has appeared in court on 17 occasions and has 31 criminal offences on his record.
Psychiatric assessments deemed him a “dangerous offender”, said Mr Wright.
In a victim impact statement, Mr Duncan’s widow Maria said: “The person who did this had convictions. Nothing stopped him. He continued and he murdered my husband.
“Please do not allow him to devastate any more families. He is a danger to all of us.”
Mr Duncan’s 15-year-old son was in the city centre that evening for a cinema trip and saw the cordoned off area without realising his father had been attacked. In a victim statement, he said of the attacker: “I am angry he was out free, and cannot understand why he was not locked up.”
Caroline Goodwin QC, defending, said Ireland “had spoken of his absolute remorse”.
Sentencing, Mr Justice Lavender said Ireland’s offending started at 14, and he had offences of making threats with knives on his record.