Colm he punched someone in the head. completely sober. He may not be the first ‘lad’ to punch his brother, but we aren’t talking about kids here. If he walked down the street and punched you in the head, putting you into hospital would you be so forgiving? What is extremely unlucky about someone getting seriously hurt from a punch in the head…what else would you expect to happen? I don’t punch people in the head when I’m upset or angry, do you?

Conn is my name, thanks BingoJaw ;) You can’t compare those two scenarios. I didn’t grow up with the guy and I don’t love him dearly, nor does he know me. If he punched me in the head, he’d just be a violent stranger. I’ve never punched anyone in the head but I threw my fair share of shoes etc at my bro in my younger years. Should I be arrested for that?

:)…I disagree. What you are saying could be compared to a husband who beats his wife to a pulp yet gets some sort of a free pass because she still loves him dearly, and he isn’t a violent stranger. There is a huge difference between kids throwing shoes or pillows etc, than a grown man punching another grown man in the head. And, unlike other serious assaults we read about every day, he was totally sober.

I see what you’re saying, but it’s not quite the same as an abusive spouse/partner/sibling/parent/offspring in this case. It was a fight and one of them landed a punch that floored the other one. I would think he suffered enough in the period where he didn’t know if his brother (who, by what I’ve read, he had a great relationship with) was going to live or die, thanks to one foolish punch.
Drunk or sober shouldn’t really come into it. If he was drunk, I wouldn’t expect the court to accept that as mitigation

I know a girl who was beaten half to death by her bf in a phone box, they both work in my local . She had to be carried onto the ambulance and he deservedly got a prison sentence. His defense was that it was a ‘once off’ and he had never been abusive before.

To be honest with you worries me even more that this guy behaved like that completely sober, what would have happened if he had been drunk! This guy could quite feasibly do the same again in the middle of the day to another innocent bystander. I’m not saying he will, but there is certainly a very high probability of this guy violently assaulting someone again. I don’t assault people, I am sure you don’t either…and if I did, I don’t think I would deserve the excuse of it being a ‘foolish punch’ I tell you one thing, if he did it to one of my family or friends i would want the book thrown at him, as would most people.

We are going to have to agree to disagree Conn :)

Fair enough. You make a fair point. Personally, i can’t really get around the difference between one punch from one grown man to another and a lowlife degenerate raining punches on a girl cornered in a phone box. For me, they’re worlds apart in terms of deserved punishment, but as you say… agree to disagree. Good chat

I was using that example to emphasize that a ‘once off’ act of violence is the same, no matter who is at the receiving end. Violent assault is violent assault, man or woman

You used an example of someone being beaten half to death by her boyfriend in a phonebox to underline the ‘once off’ bit?
What if I went the other way and used the “yellow reg” game we used to play, where myself and my brothers would punch each others shoulders as hard as we possibly could whenever we saw a car with a yellow reg??

Don’t use examples that don’t compare, if you don’t want comparisons drawn. We shan’t be comparing this case to someone pulling a gun and shooting their brother in the kneecaps either, regardless of both acts falling under ‘violent assault’.

We really probably should just leave it at ‘agree to disagree’

A grown adult violently assaulted another man. He almost killed the man.

You say it’s comparable to young children/siblings throwing shoes at each other. Now you are are talking about kids playing car registration games…wtf?????

If you think it’s ok for someone to violently assault and almost kill another person because they are related…yes, we, and most normal logical people will disagree with you.

Perhaps he will shoot him next time, but hey…it’s ok, just siblings having a bit of old horseplay eh? Or maybe, just maybe someone who is capable of such violence is capable of doing the same again to a complete stranger and almost killing them….but thats naughty because they are not related….

I give up lol

A grown adult punched his brother in a fight. That’s it. Stop calling it “violently assaulted another man”.
It did not/does not warrant a prison sentence. Even if the victim had unfortunately died, I bet the father would not have been calling for his other son to be imprisoned

It is a violent assault though, he didn’t throw flower petals at him. I bet if it was a stranger that put his son into hospital dad would be calling for him to be imprisoned. Punch/Violence…I hate it all Conn, life is short enough. Peace dude :)

Better stay out of his was then, PingoPaw.

I think the poor guy realises this and has learnt a harsh lesson. He didn’t get away with it I’d imagine he will punish himself forever

I did see it Ian – you might consider it normal but I don’t.

A stupid mistake? He violently assaulted someone almost killing them. What lesson did he learn? If I punch your father or brother/sister in the head would be just a stupid mistake also? I’ve had plenty of arguments with my siblings, who hasn’t, but how many grown men punch someone in the head almost killing them…sober?

Stephen . best comment here yet .. I do not know anybody involved but glad it turned out the way it did. let them get on with life as it must have been torture for all the family.

His brother didnt want to but legally the courts had to. Its not a paddy state where laws can be twisted and bended based on an idiots decision in court

if he punched someone else’s brother justice would be demanded but it was his brother he half killed so he gets sympathy crazy stuff.

Sometimes being Irish is like living in a parallel universe! FFS this guy almost killed a man. An ‘unfortunate’ incident, are you serious? If he went up and punched you in the head would it be so ‘unfortunate’? Is a thug on the street who ‘happy slaps’ an innocent person also “unfortunate”, should he also get away with it?

I said accident not incident.

The injured brother (who also called it an accident) is by all accounts feeling well and on the road to full recovery. He alongside his family have pleaded that leniency be shown and the family be allowed to move on. The courts in my mind have taken all things into account and acted responsibly.

Obviously if some thug assaults an innocent bystander then they should face justice. The scenario you painted has been a frequent occurrence in Sydney but that is not what happened here. He didn’t punch me or someone else’s brother. It was not a random attack, a ”punch and run” or ”king hit”. Hypothetical situations, what ifs or maybes do not come into it. This was a physical altercation between siblings in public. A suspended sentence makes sense considering the gent’s full recovery, admittance and ownership of the crime and the wishes of the victim and his family.

“Accident” What is accidental about causing serious physical harm to another person by violently punching them in the head?

An accident is skidding on black ice and crashing into somebody, not a sober grown man purposely and violently punching someone in the head almost killing them.

Would the injured brother still call it an ‘accident’ if you or I assaulted him, would his family? Of course they are going to plead leniency, they are his family, that’s what families do. How many mothers and fathers of the thugs we read about every day have asked the judge to send their children to prison?

What is your definition of a thug? Is this guy not a thug? Was his brother not an innocent bystander? A punch in the head almost killing another man is pretty random to me. I haven’t been in the same situation, nor do I know anybody who has! There is nothing hypothetical here, a sober man punched another innocent man in the head almost killing him.

“What is accidental? What would the bloke say if we punched him?”

I dont know nor will i attempt to guess or imagine what he might think. Those questions, in concerning his thinking would be better served by asked him don’t you think?

The victim himself described it as an accident. Debate disagree agree, he said it, not me.

Also are you aware that the bloke who was assaulted initially escalated the confrontation from a verbal to a physical one? His “agreesive pushing” as described in the SMH was the catalyst for the punch.

So again i fail to see how a stranger striking another in a random, unprovoked attack is the same as two family members in a fight.

are you saying a physical altercation between family members in public is excusable but the same situation between random people is not .

this lad is a dangerous individual if he can upend his brother( who he claims to love dearly) for pushing him just think what he would do to someone he has no connection to dangerous lad.

Not sure where you picked that up from mate, perhaps read my comments again? Im highlighting that this case differs greatly from the scenarios described above and the “king hit” cases of the past whereby individuals have randomly and unexpectantly assaulted others.

Violence is simply wrong.

read again your post above where you said just that

You don’t know the difference between what an accident is, and a violent assault? I’ll ask you so, what would you say if a grown man punched you in the head and pout you into hospital?

Obviously, the victim is his brother. How many thugs and lowlifes attack innocent people on our streets every day? I suspect their siblings plead with the judge not to prosecute them also.

I fail to see how a push or verbal altercation excuses or condones the use of extreme violence.

If you don’t see the criminality of a man violently assaulting another man, ok. And if you think it makes a difference if they are related or not….ok :)

I suppose it would have been ok also if he had stabbed him also, or perhaps shot him in a fit of rage…being family and all

Jim going to look a bit silly now that the article has been updated!!

Now I look even sillier for typing “Jim” instead of “I’m”.

Would you like him in your town?

You’re a Fidiot Stephen.
Go back to your village.
They miss you.

Why is it a bad decision?

I agree it was a bad decision.

What he did was abhorrent. He’s very lucky he’s not going to jail.

Hopefully he doesn’t prove me right by replicating this sickening assault in the future, but sadly, I won’t be surprised if he does.

Sure why don’t you ask what his skin colour he is while you’re at it? Or throw in the Gay card too, that’ll get a few people rattled.

To people from a country founded on and advocates of, extreme violence…the British love conflict. It runs through their parliament, newspapers, television and culture in general. They lionise their “heroes” and degrade other nations as part of everyday interaction. I’m honoured not to hold a British passport. Licence to kill!

Con you’re a troll, an idiot, a racist, the list is endless.