This article is from page 13 of the 2012-05-08 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 13 JPG
A MAN who was assaulted by his brother with a hatchet has said the family has been left “troubled and broken” by the incident.
Father of four Michael McDonagh had half of his left ear severed from his head when he was attacked by James McDonagh (38) at the Ballymurtagh halting site in Shannon on August 31 (2011).
James McDonagh, with an address at bay six Ballymurtagh, Shannon, was last week convicted at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court of assault causing harm to his brother at Ballymurtagh on the day in question.
A jury also found James McDonagh guilty of possessing a hatchet with intent to cause injury to his brother Michael. Michael McDonagh, of bay 5 Ballymurtagh, Shannon, suffered serious cuts to his head and abdomen as a result of the assault.
Michael McDonagh’s victim impact statement was heard at the conclusion of a four-day trial in Ennis on Friday.
The statement was read out in court by Detective Garda David Laing of Shannon Garda station.
Michael McDonagh stated that he had made the statement as he had been forced to seek the protection of the State after the assault.
He said, “I believed I was going to die and I could see the hatred in my brother’s eyes.”
Michael McDonagh stated that his wife had been traumatised by the assault and that his children still wake up screaming at night.
He continued, “I am not the first brother that Jimmy has attacked and I am sure I will not be the last unless a dramatic intervention is made.”
Michael McDonagh stated that the assault had put “huge strain” on his family and left his wife and children in a “very nervous state.”
Referring the consequences of the incident, Michael McDonagh said, “We know we are left with a broken and troubled family.”
He stated that he had not made the statement to ensure his brother got the maximum sentence.
Rather, Michael McDonagh stated, he hoped that the sentence would include some aspect of medical treatment that his brother “urgently requires.”
Michael McDonagh also praised the “swift action” of the gardaí in his statement.