Suspended prison sentence for man who stabbed brother

A man with mental health difficulties received a three-year suspended prison sentence after he admitted stabbing his brother a number of times with a kitchen knife.
On July 12, 2015, Patrick Hussey (27) of Rowan Drive, Castlebar, stabbed his brother, Michael Francis Hussey (33), a number of times at a family gathering in Balla for his father’s Month’s Mind Mass.
Last week’s sitting of Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court heard there was a fraught relationship between the defendant and some of his siblings, and that Mr Hussey had brought the knife with him to the house in Balla.
Garda Padraig Naughton explained the incident occurred at approximately 10am at 7 Holiday Homes, Balla, shortly after Michael Hussey and his sister, Jennifer, arrived at the house. He explained that the defendant became upset and told his brother to get out before picking up the knife and lunging at him.
He cut his brother on the left side of his body and, despite being put in a headlock, continued to stab his brother with the knife. Michael Hussey managed to free himself before running towards Gaughan’s Costcutter store on Main Street.
The court heard that Michael and Jennifer were driven to the house by another person and in the course of the dispute, Patrick also broke her windscreen.
Peter Gaughan contacted the gardaí at 10.17am. When Garda Naughton arrived, he arrested Patrick Hussey and brought him to Castlebar Garda station.
In a victim impact statement, Michael Hussey said that the attack has greatly affected his life and his confidence going into the future, adding that the injuries had resulted in a loss of physical power.
Michael McGeough, who works as a mental-health social worker, explained that Patrick had a diminished intelligence capacity and had been in foster care since he was nine years old. He said Hussey currently lives independently with community support but had been admitted to residential care in September 2015 following a relapse.
Mr McGeough told Judge Rory McCabe that Mr Hussey is now on medication and stable. He said he would be concerned that his treatment would lapse if he was sent to prison.
Mr Eoin Garavan, counsel for Mr Hussey, said his client was from a dysfunctional family and that he was being goaded by his siblings after the incident. He said he accepted responsibility for what he did and was of a low risk of reoffending.
Judge McCabe said that the fact the knife was brought to the house showed a degree of premeditation, and that the sentence in this case could be as much as four-and-a-half years in prison.
However, he said did not think sending Mr Hussey to prison would be in the interest of justice. He sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment but suspended the entirety for five years on the condition that Mr Hussey remains of good behaviour and complies by all his medical conditions.