An Army private who was one of three bouncers involved in an assault on two youths in a Dublin nightclub has had his six-month prison sentence suspended by the Court of Criminal Appeal.
After a fight on August 5th, 2000, the two youths were escorted by the manager of Cats nightclub, Leeson Street, to the front door of the club.
They were then attacked by John O'Meara (34), Newbridge, Co Kildare, and two other bouncers.
On January 15th O'Meara and one of the other bouncers were jailed for six months at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. In November the third bouncer received a six-month sentence, suspended for one year. All three had pleaded guilty.
When O'Meara's appeal came before the three-judge court yesterday, it was told the appeal was brought because of the disparity between the jail sentence imposed on O'Meara and the suspended sentence imposed on one of his colleagues.
There had been evidence that a baton had been used in the assault, but no evidence that O'Meara had used it, counsel argued. The man who had been given the suspended sentence in November had been identified as the "most active" of those in the assault.
In the Circuit Criminal Court in January, an Army commandant had testified about O'Meara's good character. Evidence was also given that a custodial sentence would terminate his career in the Army, where he had been for 14 years. His dismissal would result in a loss of pension rights. He had also offered a substantial amount of recompense.
Counsel for the Director of Public Prosecutions argued that the Circuit Court judge had not erred in sentencing O'Meara. The legal team for the man who had been given the suspended sentence in November had indicated that a trial date for him would no longer be necessary as a plea was forthcoming. However, it was only on the morning of the planned trial of the other two that pleas were entered.
The assault had been a a significant one, and had taken place at premises from which the victims could not escape. O'Meara was the only one of the three accused who was a member of the Defence Forces. None of them had any previous convictions.
Giving the judgment of the appeal court, the Chief Justice, Mr Justice Keane, presiding, said it was in O'Meara's favour that he had no previous convictions and had been of perfectly good character until the incident.
He said the court trusted that O'Meara had learned his lesson. It would allow the appeal and substitute a six-month suspended sentence.