Teen spared sentence for role in vicious gang attack over greeting card

A Dublin youth has been spared a custodial sentence for his role in a vicious gang attack on a man after a group of teens “took the law into their own hands”.

Dublin Children’s Court heard that Christopher Palmer (20) was found dead five days after he was repeatedly punched, stamped and kicked in the head on November 11th last year.

He was set on because he allegedly stole a greeting card from a shop.

However, he did not to go to hospital and gardai could not attribute his death to the violent incident because they could not know if anything happened to him in the intervening days.

A 17-year-old boy, who had the least serious role in the attack, pleaded guilty to violent disorder and a positive probation report was furnished to his sentence hearing. He had struck the victim once, the Dublin Children’s Court had heard.

Judge Brendan Toale imposed a six-month probation bond on the youth.

He must comply with the directions of his probation officer to divert him from re-offending, and commit no new crimes while the bond was in force. Otherwise, the case would be re-entered and he could face a custodial sentence instead.

He was aged 16 at the time and was the second oldest of three boys charged with involvement in the incident.

A co-accused, aged 16, awaits sentence for his role, after he pleaded guilty, and is due back in court in January.

The Children’s Court had heard that boy, then aged 15, dragged Mr Palmer out of a shop at Ballybough Road, Dublin 3 and he was responsible for four out of 19 blows, many to his head, inflicted over a two-minute period.

He was the youngest of three youths charged.

The third and oldest co-accused, aged 17, suspected of being the ring-leader and responsible for 11 kicks and punches will face a higher court, the judge ruled.

He had offered to plead guilty but describing the violence as vicious and significant, Judge Toale held that his case should be sent forward to the Circuit Court, which has tougher sentencing powers.

He was served with a book of evidence and returned for trial to the higher court where he will face his next hearing on January 24th next.

Outlining the background, Detective Garda Kevin Keys told Judge Toale that Mr Palmer died on November 16th last year in Birmingham in England. His family asked if the events connected to the charge contributed in any way to his death.

Gardai investigated the matter, he said, adding, “and we cannot attribute anything here to his death”.

He said at about 5.30pm, Mr Palmer entered the DayToday shop on Ballybough Road and appeared to take a greeting card and tried to conceal it on his person.

He was observed by a group of eight to 10 people outside.

It was alleged they “took matters into their own hands and retrieved the card”. The man received a total of 19 blows, four from the youngest attacker who kicked the man in the chest and in the face.

The court heard that a postmortem was carried out in Birmingham where Mr Palmer was found dead five day later. There was no medical evidence that the attack caused his death. However, the postmortem showed he had mild to medium injury to the brain.