Dean Kerrie killed a man who had broke into house in July 2018 (Picture: Collins Courts)
An Irishman has been jailed for killing an intruder who had forced his way into his home.
Dean Kerrie was just 17 when he stabbed Jack Power in the chest in July 2018.
The 25-year-old fisherman had put a window through and entered the Waterford property to confront him and accuse him of damaging his car.
Kerrie – now 21 – stabbed him once with a kitchen knife and the intruder collapsed and died at the scene.
A judge said that though he didn’t start the trouble, the convicted man had resorted to excessive and disproportionate violence by using a knife on someone who was unarmed.
Kerrie was described as being ‘slight’ at the time and the victim, who had been drinking, was tall and well-built.
Mr Power stormed into Kerrie’s bedroom and the court heard the suggestion that the defendant’s mother was also assaulted in the melee.
Kerrie told police he found the knife at his bedside but, the Irish Mirror reports, the judge said he did not believe the court had heard the truth about the ‘provenance’ of the weapon.
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Officers found him weeping in the kitchen after he called the police himself.
The judge said he had taken into account Kerrie’s genuine remorse and young age at the time of the incident when passing sentence.
He was found guilty of manslaughter after the jury decided the defendant had acted in self-defence and acquitted him of murder.
Mr Justice McDermott acknowledged the trial provided ‘cold comfort for relatives whose loss is profound and life-long’, the Mirror reported.
Mr Power was described as an ‘exceptionally hard-working young man’ who was ‘fuelled by his father’s encouragement’.
He added: ‘Nothing I do or say will alleviate this suffering. The sentence I impose must be proportionate to the gravity of the offence of manslaughter and also appropriate to his [Kerrie’s] circumstances.’
The judge imposed a sentence of four years and six months, suspending the final year to take into account time already served.
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Dean Kerrie was just 17 when he killed a man who had broke into his house to confront him.