The trial of a Dublin teenager accused of the murder of another teenager began yesterday at the Central Criminal Court.
The accused, who is 17 and cannot be named for legal reasons, denies murdering the young man on October 13th, 2002, outside a cinema on Dublin's northside.
The accused also denies stealing the victim's mobile phone and a sum of cash on October 12th, 2002.
Mr Brendan Grehan SC, prosecuting, told the jury that this was a "very sad case".
"The deceased . . . was a mere 17 years of age at the time of his death. The accused is now only 17½ years of age and he was only 15 at the time of the incident."
The dead youth, Mr Grehan said, was born on March 23rd, 1985, and came from Donaghmede, where he lived with his parents and his older sister.
He had just finished transition year, had a part-time job in a golf shop, and wanted to study architecture when he finished school.
Mr Grehan told the jury of eight men and four women that the young man had leukaemia when he was only four. "He was treated successfully and you will hear from the State pathologist that this played no part of his death," said Mr Grehan.
On the night the young man lost his life, Mr Grehan said, he had arranged to meet his girlfriend at 8 p.m. at the Leisureplex in Coolock to play pool and computer games.
He withdrew €120 from a pass machine on his way.
At 11.05 p.m. he told his girlfriend and her friends that he was getting the last bus home because he was working the next day.
Mr Grehan told the jury the young man walked outside with his girlfriend where he kissed her goodnight.
"A short distance away \ was set upon and mugged. He arrived back staggering to the front of the cinema. He was bleeding and coughing up blood."
The court heard that a number of people came to the young man's assistance, including his girlfriend.
"He then collapsed on the ground," Mr Grehan said. At 11.21 p.m. an ambulance arrived and he was brought to Beaumont Hospital within four minutes, where doctors were on standby.
The court heard that he was taken "immediately to theatre but suffered a cardiac arrest and then another one".
Mr Grehan said: "Despite attempts to resuscitate him, he was pronounced dead at 3.10 a.m. on October 13th, 2002."
The court heard that bank-cards belonging to him were discovered on the road near the murder scene, and also a knife. "There was blood on the knife and the DNA showed it was the blood of [the young man\]," Mr Grehan said.
Mr Grehan told the jury that the State pathologist, Ms Marie Cassidy, would say that the young man suffered three stab wounds to the side of his chest.
"Two were superficial but a third had gone deep into his lung and caused deep bleeding and it was this that caused him to ultimately die," Mr Grehan said.
The trial continues before Mr Justice Abbott today.