A Co Wexford construction worker who paid €10,000 in compensation to a man he injured in an unprovoked attack in a nightclub in Dublin has been spared a criminal conviction and a jail sentence.
Garry Rynhart (23) of Ballycanew, Gorey, had pleaded guilty at Dublin District Court last year to assault causing harm on March 3rd, 2010.
He had no prior criminal convictions and had already paid €5,000 in compensation to the victim. Judge Cormac Dunne had held that he should pay a further €5,000.
Judge Dunne noted that Rynhart had paid the money in full and had not come to further Garda attention at the resumption of the case yesterday. He said Rynhart had discharged his duty to society and to his victim and had hopefully learned a lesson, and then struck out the case.
Judge Dunne had been told Rynhart knocked into a table where the complainant had been sitting.
Rynhart said nothing and then went around the man. “The injured party glanced to see where the defendant was; all of a sudden the injured party received an extremely hard full force punch to the face, knocking him to the ground,” the court had heard.
Judge Dunne had noted a medical report on the victim showed he suffered a fractured nose. It also referred to him suffering numbness to his cheek and upper gum after the attack.
Prosecuting Garda Eoin Cooper spoke to the victim last year and learned that he was still suffering from numbness in his left cheek, but the feeling in his gum has returned.
The court had heard the victim still had a slight bump on his nose which would have to be broken again if he decided to have an operation to have it reset.
The defence had asked the court to note Rynhart had become depressed after he dropped out of a college course in civil engineering.
He had “too much time on his hands” and began drinking heavily.
Judge Dunne had noted Rynhart had no prior criminal convictions and testimonials which were furnished to the court.
The court had been told Rynhart later got work in Poland and was helping to support his family.
Earlier in the proceedings, Judge Dunne had said he had to consider whether Rynhart should be left with a criminal conviction for the rest of his life for an offence committed when he was a young man.
He had also said the court had to take into account the effects of the “indiscriminate” assault on the victim.