Madam, - After the conviction and sentence of a man for unlawful killing, as reported in your edition of May 27th, a Dublin Circuit Court judge warned that "assaults involving kicks to the head were becoming an increasingly common feature of cases before the courts".
Another increasingly common feature is the suspension of significant portions of sentences upon conviction, often in the case of crimes of the utmost ruthlessness and ferocity.
While I fully subscribe to a humane and enlightened approach to sentencing and penal reform, I believe it is imperative that courts reflect society's abhorrence at the savagery of some crimes. - Yours, etc,
TOM COOPER, Delaford Lawn, Knocklyon, Dublin 16.