An employee who punched his supervisor at work, knocking him out briefly, has walked free from Dublin Circuit Criminal Court with a suspended sentence.
James Broderick (45) pleaded guilty on the day of his scheduled trial to assault causing harm to a man at Cleveland Cable Company, Poppintree Industrial Estate, Finglas on October 10th, 2016.
The injured man suffered a fractured jaw and a black eye but declined to file a victim impact report.
The court heard that Broderick of Markievicz House, Townsend Street, Dublin, believed he had been unfairly treated by his supervisor prior to the incident.
In his ruling on Tuesday, Judge Cormac Quinn said this was a mitigating factor in what was nonetheless a serious workplace assault in which the injured party had suffered serious injuries.
Other mitigating factors included Broderick’s guilty plea, his personal circumstances and the fact that he had met with gardaí voluntarily by arrangement.
Judge Quinn noted that “hostilities had been brewing” for a few days leading up to the assault.
The court heard that on the day in question, Broderick walked up to his supervisor and punched him once in face, causing him to lose consciousness for a few seconds.
Broderick has since left the Cleveland Cable Company and works elsewhere.
He has 37 previous convictions, mostly for public order matters, but including one less serious assault which was dealt with by the District Court.
Dean Kelly BL, defending, said Broderick was truly remorseful and had brought the sum of €3,000 to court as a gesture of his regret.
The court heard that Broderick had a good work record and was in a stable relationship with his partner, with whom he has one young child.
Judge Quinn set a headline sentence of two years but reduced this to 12 months, which he suspended in full for two years. He ordered Broderick to ensure that the sum of €3,000 was paid over to the injured party within the next four months.
Broderick was also instructed to abide by the supervision of the Probation Services for 12 months and to keep the peace for a period of two years.