Friends who left man lying on street with fractured jaw and broken leg after assault avoid jail

Before the court pleading guilty to assault were Tomme Smillie (24), Belvedere Grove, Wexford, and TJ Doyle (25), Ferndale Park, Wexford.

The man injured in South Main Street in the early hours of Sunday, July 28 was Gearoid Redmond, who was present in court.

Some CCTV footage was available to Judge Martin Nolan of what occurred when Redmond and his friends met a group which included the two accused.

It was accepted that Smillie was first to punch the injured party and that Doyle then punched him as he was on the ground.

The result was damage to Redmond’s jaw which had to be wired shut for four weeks.

It also emerged that he somehow broke his leg as he fell, so that he required the insertion of metal plates by surgery.

The injured man later had no recollection of how he incurred his injuries.

He told investigating gardaí that one moment he was outside Penneys and the next he woke up in Waterford Regional.

Investigations led to Doyle, who was recognised as a GAA player on review of the CCTV.

Counsel for Smillie argued that his client had reacted by throwing a single punch in the belief that he was coming to the defence of a friend.

It was stated that he had been employed as a scaffolder from the age of 17.

Doyle’s barrister revealed that his client had taken both alcohol and cocaine on the night in question.

He had worked as a hotel porter but was off sick at present.

He brought €1,000 to court.

Gearóid Redmond in attendance when the judge delivered his verdict on what he called a ‘pretty vicious assault’.

Both men punched their victim, the judge noted.

However, the court accepted that the assault was not planned and that they seemed unlikely to re-offend.

It would be unjust to imprison them, the judge concluded.

However, as he suspended their two year sentences, he ruled that they must pay for their crime.

Both were required to hand over €1,000 each and both were given a year to come up with a further €4,000 each.

The money - €10,000 in all would be offered to Redmond and, if declined, should be passed on by gardaí to a local charity.