Three army men convicted of assault have ‘thrown away their potential’, judge says

Jordan Kavanagh (24) and his younger brother Jerome Kavanagh (23), along with their friend Jason Keating (24), have “thrown away all their potential”, Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today after she had heard evidence in the case.

The three young men overcame barriers from their childhoods to become role models in their community of Ballymun and were enjoying successful careers in the army before they engaged in the attack on a young man they had never met, the court heard.

All three resigned from the army ahead of entering guilty pleas.

They each pleaded guilty to one count of assault causing harm and one count of violent disorder outside The Living Room bar in Cathal Brugha Street on February 25, 2024. None of the men has any previous convictions.

The victim in the case, a young man in his 20s, suffered a concussion, broken teeth and scarring to his lip and nose in the wake of the attack, which started when a drink was spilt in the late-night bar.

Jordan Kavanagh punched the victim before all parties were ejected from the bar, Garda Charlotte Donne told Lisa Dempsey BL, prosecuting. A few minutes later, the fight started again with Jordan Kavanagh and Keating punching and kicking the victim to the ground and continuing to attack him.

The man was thrown onto the road in the course of the assault, with Jerome Kavanagh also entering the fray after initially trying to break things up.

When a passerby tried to come to the victim's aid, Jordan Kavanagh also punched him to the ground. This man remains unidentified, the court heard.

The victim was taken to hospital by ambulance, where his facial injuries required the intervention of a plastic surgeon, the court heard.

In his victim impact statement, which was read out by counsel, the complainant said the attack changed every aspect of his life. “Before the attack, I was outgoing, independent, confident, optimistic, took people at face value,” he said. “...Since the assault, I have become a different person.”

He said he no longer trusts people as he used to; he regularly cancels social engagements and is withdrawn and irritable. He suffers from anxiety, and the assault has affected his confidence immensely, he said. He has grown a beard to try and hide the facial scars.

The victim did not wish to come to court, but his mother was present, the court heard. CCTV footage of the attack was played in court.

Gardaí were alerted to a large presence outside the bar and moved CCTV cameras to cover the street, capturing the incident.

After the trio fled the scene, Jordan Kavanagh was detained by gardaí almost immediately, while Jason Keating was caught a short while later sitting on the steps of a city centre hotel. They were interviewed the following day after they had sobered up.

Jerome Keating later went to the gardaí voluntarily. All three made immediate admissions to gardaí and expressed their remorse and shock at their actions.

Jordan Kavanagh, of Poppintree Crescent, Ballymun, told gardaí he did not normally drink alcohol and could “count on the fingers of one hand” how many nights out he had had in the year prior.

He said he was “disgusted” and “embarrassed” by his actions, with Simon Matthews BL, defending, noting: “It was an innocuous bump of the shoulder and a drink spill that kicked off this altercation.”

In his plea of mitigation, Michael Bowman SC, defending, said Jordan Kavanagh had a difficult childhood and struggled with substance abuse issues, which he managed to overcome himself.

He said his client “had a career with ambition, promise and potential and all of that has been set aside” as a result of his actions that night. In a letter of apology, Jordan Kavanagh said he behaved in a manner which was “utterly without excuse”.

He said he wants to make better choices in the future, live a more responsible life and work to prevent similar future occurrences in the future.

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Jason Keating, of Whiteacre Place, Ballymun, was a person of “exemplary character”, his defence counsel, Michael O'Higgins SC, said. He was a top student in his school and has played active roles in his local GAA club, his old school where he volunteers as an SNA, and he plays the trombone for a brass band.

Keating's reaction to his actions that night was “remorse, shame, (he was) shocked and appalled”, Mr O'Higgins said. “It was in breach of his army training.”

He resigned from the army ahead of his court appearance because he was mindful of the fact that the case could draw negative media attention to the army, “an organisation he loved”. He hopes to return to third-level education to become a music teacher.

Keating “is and has always been a moderate drinker”, and this behaviour was completely out of character for him, the court heard.

Jerome Kavanagh, of the same address as his older brother, struggled with similar childhood issues in the family, Garnet Orange SC, defending, said.

He grew up being exposed to violence in his community and “perhaps failed to develop caution that other people might have about the use of violence”, the court heard. Defence counsel noted Jerome Kavanagh initially tried to separate the parties before “a red mist descended” and he entered the fray.

A letter of apology was handed into court expressing his regret, remorse and shame for his actions.

A large number of testimonials were handed in on behalf of the men, who each had €5000 in court as a token of their remorse. Defence counsel urged the judge to consider all sentencing options available to her, including a non-custodial sentence and community service.

Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin said she would order a Probation Report, and she also asked prosecution counsel to look into whether restorative justice would be suitable as part of the sentence being imposed.

“This is one of the most profoundly depressing lunch times I've ever had in this building,” she said, referring to the material she had reviewed during the break.

“For these young men to overcome such barriers and throw it all away in a moment of madness...What they did is just completely appalling. They have thrown away all their potential. (The complainant's) life is absolutely ruined.”

She adjourned the matter for sentence on November 3 and remanded the men on continuing bail until then.