Will it ever be enough?
When can enough be enough? Can anyone truly be happy with a sentence that is handed down to someone who been found guilty of committing a crime. There will be those that say that the punishment does not reflect the crime, always too much or not enough but never just right.
The case of Ian Kenny would seem to fall under this category. Mr Kenny was shot in the head by Jonathan Dunne in his car in Stillorgan in Dublin last July.
Mr Dunne was sentenced to 12 years for the crime and this has brought about a backlash from the Kenny Family. RTE.ie states that Kathleen Kenny, the victim’s mother, said the judges “are letting the gunmen off, the Government is letting them off and the Minister for Justice is letting them off.”
This crime was said to have been committed by Mr Dunne ‘as a favour for dealers’ when €50,000 worth of drugs had been lost and Mr Dunne felt the need to return the favour.
The sentence is something that no one can be happy with. Somewhere tonight the Kenny family will have found that their grief has just been added to; perhaps doubled if not trebled. The Dunne family should wonder how one of their own could even consider an act such as this, as to whether it will ever happen we will never know.
The pain and suffering that has been experienced in this case was never going to able to be fully erased; no matter what the sentence handed down was going to be. No longer are disputes sorted out by verbal confrontation and on some occasions physical fighting. Now when trouble rears its ugly head, immediately weapons of confrontation are used. Stabbings and gun shot wounds are commonplace now, which is frightening to even consider.
There have always been the wrong places to be in at the wrong time and low lit streets that most would not like to find themselves in late at night. Those streets can now be found just about anywhere in the country. The grip that the authorities believe to have on the situation is an illusion.
In football it is often said that the referee can sometimes try to portray himself as the “star of the show”. This very same thought struck me when I read of Mr Justice Paul Carney stating that Joe Duffy had interfered in this case, by interviewing Kathleen Kenny, while the case was “still a live issue”.
I wonder if this is simply a case of Mr Carney reminding people that he is in existence and still reasonably “famous” in media circles?
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 and is filed under Pain and suffering, Thoughts & Questions, Views on News.
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zara Says:
In reply to your blog about jonathan receiving 12 years, why is this not enough for people? Wayne O’Donoghue murdered a young child and walked free after 2 years in jail. Now if people wish to give out about the justice in this country they should be talking sense. 12 years is more then enough for a man that shot his friend in the shoulder in the hope that he’d try run. It’s clear that jonathan did not decide upon himself to shoot his friend and was put in probably one of the worst positions anyone could be put in. If someone came to me and stated “it’s him or you and your family” i would take no heitation in protecting my loved ones. The gardai wouldn’t have been able to help so what exact choice did he have????
May 29th, 2008 at 12:37 am
Mike Says:
I understand what you are saying…but what if it was your loved one that was the victim?
In that situation, could you forgive easily and state that there was a punishment suitable for a crime such as this?
I think we can say what we would do and how we would react while we are away from the situation, but to find ourselves smack bang in the middle of things might bring about a different reaction.
There is incredible leniancy in sentencing for crimes; mainly due to overcrowding prisons and the knowledge that the majority of judges across the planet are out of touch with the harsh realities of life. “Society” blames everyone else, before adding in the “ah he/she is not really a bad person” before letting too many things go without dealing with it.
I would state it is part of the reason we find ourselves in the situation with crime today, not just in Ireland
May 30th, 2008 at 4:03 pm
Sister Julianna Says:
Why , please, are you judging? Where is Jesus in all this? Forgiveness is not an optional thing for any Christian. Judging like this is not as Jesus teaches. Blessings; NB I am offline again now… Life is too short and there are too many needy ones to serve as Jesus. Maybe helping others in an active way, rather than long words, would help you see things more clearly….
May 31st, 2008 at 7:47 pm
Mike Says:
Sister Julianna,
May I just say that I have respect for your comments and also for what you do.
While I may not agree with everything you have said, I still hold the respect for you in high esteem and I would encourage you to contribute more with comments, as debate is something that does, and should, challenge the soul and the mind.
June 1st, 2008 at 12:51 am