There's going to be a life for a life, aunt warns killer

The dead man's sister said: "There's going to be a life for a life. He killed our brother and we're going to kill him."

She was speaking after James McInerney (23) began an 18-month sentence for killing his father with a spade in a beating that he said was "a long time coming".

McInerney, of Lacey Avenue, Templemore, Co Tipperary, was found not guilty of murdering his father but guilty of his manslaughter following an eight-day trial at the Central Criminal Court.

EVIL

He had described James 'Jimmy' McInerney (56) as "the most evil man you could have met", who had spent 25 years beating his wife and family.

The dead man's widow told the court that she probably wouldn't be alive were it not for her son's protection.

The defendant had denied murder at the family home on June 17, 2009. He argued that the beating was reasonable self- defence as his father was about to beat him with the spade before he took it from him.

He told gardai that his drunken father was shouting abuse at his family from the back yard that evening. The accused said he went outside when he heard glass break in the yard.

"I flipped out in a rage. I was sick of it. I wasn't able for any more," he said.

He said he grabbed the spade out of his father's hand as he swung it at him. He said he hit him in the head with it and the older man fell to his knees. He hit him another couple of times in his head and gut, he said.

"I knew I'd gone too far. It was too late," he said. "If I didn't put Daddy down, he'd have put me down."

The judge decided that there was enough mitigation in this 'unusual, exceptional and extraordinary' case to reduce the sentence to 18 months.

Later, the victim's youngest sister, Eileen McInerney, said her nephew was safer in jail.

"I'm going to kill him myself if I get my hands on him," she said.

"There will be trouble. We're not going to let him off," she added"

hnews@herald.ie