THE FAMILY of manslaughter victim Michael Doherty (14) has been left to serve a life sentence, the boy's uncle Tom Sherlock said at the conclusion of the trial in the Central Criminal Court in Dublin yesterday.
John McGovern (19) was sentenced to six years in prison for the manslaughter of the teenager in Ennis almost two years ago.
Speaking outside the courthouse on behalf of the Doherty family, Mr Sherlock said that while justice had been done the "only consolation we have is that at the end of this Michael can rest in peace".
He said Micheal's death had been extremely tough on his parents, who never thought such a tragedy would ever visit their door. "We hope no other parents have to go through what Michael's parents, John and Norah, and both their families are going through today."
He said the family bore no malice towards the McGovern family. "There's no winners in this, everybody's a loser. No mother wants to go through what either of these mothers are going through.
"He was just an amazing kid, warm, always happy, full of life, full of joy," he said of his nephew.
Mr Sherlock added that knife-crime has no place in society.
"We would urge any person that goes out carrying a knife not to do it, life is too precious."
Carmel McGovern, the defendant's mother, said her family wished to convey its deepest sympathy to the Doherty family along with the greatest regret that their son should be involved. During the trial she said the attack was "40 seconds of out-of-character behaviour that has ruined the lives of two families".
