A man (44) has been jailed for nine months for the manslaughter of his close friend when he discharged a shotgun during a drinking session last year.
Trevor O'Gorman killed Diarmuid Byrne (41) at close range with the deceased's legally held firearm in Cork city.
He pleaded guilty to the killing in an upstairs bedroom in Mr Byrne's home at Plunkett Road in Ballyphehane on April 26th 2016.
O'Gorman was sentenced to three years in jail with the last two years and three months suspended. On Friday at Cork Circuit Criminal Court, Det Sgt Martin Canny told how gardai arrived at the scene of the shooting following the receipt of a 999 call from O'Gorman and discovered Mr Byrne with a shotgun wound to the head .
Gardai were satisfied that O’Gorman from Sarahville Place, Pouladuff Road was the only person in the house with Mr Byrne at the time of the shooting .
Tests found that the gun was close to Mr Byrne’s forehead when it was discharged and that Mr Byrne was holding the muzzle close to his head .
O’Gorman admitted firing the gun but said he did not realise it was loaded at the time. Forensic evidence suggested it was Mr Byrne who had handled the three cartridges found in the weapon and the one that had been discharged.
“He said they were messing with the gun and he pulled the trigger, not knowing that it was loaded and that it was an accident, they had been drinking,” said Det Sgt Canny . He said Mr Byrne had 237mgs of alcohol in his system and a trace of cocaine while O’Gorman had 287mgs of alcohol.
Mr Byrne used to shoot and fish while O’Gorman had done a year’s basic training in the Naval Service including handling firearms but had only fired the Beretta once ever before several years previously.
Judge Sean O Donnabhain said he was familiar with Berettas which were noted for their firm trigger pressure .
Det Sgt Canny said that O’Gorman in his 999 call had said that Mr Byrne had asked him to shoot him. The court heard that Mr Byrne had attempted to take his own life previously by overdosing on medication after he lost the sight in one eye .
Defence counsel Jim O’Mahony SC said that while O’Gorman’s recollection of what exactly happened was not very clear, he assured Judge O Donnabhain that there was no question of his client assisting Mr Byrne in taking his own life and the shooting was entirely accidental.
Judge O Donnabhain said he fully accepted that O’Gorman was deeply remorseful, that he was suffering flashbacks, that he was a good and supportive son to his elderly parents and that he was not a criminal and was blameless in all other regards.
But he said the level of recklessness involved where O’Gorman pointed a gun at a man’s head with the safety catch turned off, particularly given his weapons training in the Naval Service, was such he had to impose a jail term.
He noted the devastation that Mr Byrnes sister Ber Lyons said the killing of their brother and the circumstances of the killing had caused their family .
