A BELFAST judge yesterday called for tighter control of hunting knives in cities as he jailed a father of two for five years for stabbing his best friend to death.
Mr Justice Kerr made his comments as he jailed Gerald Curley (29) who stabbed Mr Paul Bradley (31) in the heart during a christening party last July. Mr Bradley, also a father of two, had tried to stop an argument between Curley and his girlfriend in the kitchen of their Selby Walk home in Belfast when he was stabbed once and died almost immediately.
Curley, who admitted manslaughter, was originally accused of murdering Mr Bradley on July 1st last year but a jury acquitted him and convicted him of unlawful killing. This verdict, said the judge, showed Curley never intended to cause death or injury to his friend.
But he added: "Ultimately, I cannot lose sight of the fact that a young life has been cruelly cut short" as a result of which a young family had lost the support of a husband and father. He told Curley he would "have to confront for the rest of your life the awful truth that you are responsible for the untimely death" of a friend.
Mr Justice Kerr also criticised the amount of drink consumed at the party. It was one of the messages which clearly emerged "from this dreadful episode".