Man received ‘serious glassing’ after criticising noisy group in pub

A Dublin man smashed a glass into another person’s face after overhearing him criticise the loudness of his friends, a court has heard.

Eoin McKinley (22), of Whitestown Avenue, Blanchardstown, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assault causing harm at Wetherspoon's, Westend Retail Park, Blanchardstown on May 30th, 2016.

Garda Seán Grehan told Diarmuid Collins BL, prosecuting, that on the night in question the injured party was drinking with a friend in the pub when he noticed a group of males making a lot of noise in the beer garden.

The man remarked to his friend that they were being loud and was overheard by the group. McKinley threw a glass towards their table which smashed on a fence.

A fight broke out during which McKinley smashed a glass into the face of the injured party. The man sustained a broken nose and a scar on his left eyebrow as a result of the assault.

Alcohol

In a victim impact statement read out in court, the man said his total financial loss due to medical bills and lost wages was €1,000. He said he believed that alcohol was the biggest factor in causing the altercation.

McKinley has no previous convictions and has not come to adverse garda attention since. He was 19 at the time of incident and has a one-year-old child.

Garda Grehan agreed with Mark Lynam BL, defending, that it was clear McKinley was quite intoxicated during the altercation. He said his client has applied for a loan so that he can provide €3,000 in compensation to the victim.

Mr Lynam said there was a suggestion that cocaine was involved due to the group of males being seen on CCTV entering the toilets frequently and rubbing their noses upon their return. He submitted that another man who was arrested as a result of the incident has since died of a drug overdose.

Judge Melanie Greally described the assault as "a very serious glassing" due to the victim being hit near his eye.

She ordered a community service report and adjourned the matter to June 25th.