Kyle Hayes receives 2 year suspended sentence and €10,000 fine.

I think concurrent sentences are a joke and should be abolished.

I think that suspending a 3.5-year sentence is also a joke. If you're guilty enough to get a multi-year stint in jail you should at least serve a portion of the time.

"He said Hayes had already "paid a heavy price" because of the media attention around the case and that he believed he had "taken responsibility for his actions"."

Oh the poor baba...

He didn't take responsibility for his actions. He plead not guilty for fecks sake!!

I wonder who advised Hayes to plead not guilty and reject any responsibility?

He's a young guy and I honestly think he might have been better off just pleading guilty, taking responsibility and expressing remorse. He probably would have only gotten a (shorter) suspended sentence anyways. He wouldn't have had to go through a very public court case either, and neither would the victim who often gets forgotten in all this.

He's in the public eye, so best for him would be if the public saw it as a case of "young kid, drank too much, made a mistake, took responsibility, let him move on with his life" type vibe.

But this leaves a bad taste in the mouth. John Kiely has also done damage to his reputation.

The more things change the more they stay the same.

So what part of Limerick are you from, county or city?

I think you mightn't say the same if you'd seen somebody close going through a public trial.

The lads with long conviction sheets don't give a f**k, but for other people that kind of trial and publicity is very hard.

If the judge doesn't believe he'll commit another crime, and he's been punished by the process, what's the point.

My nights out drinking are long since past. But I don't think these kind of fights are that uncommon outside nightclubs, chippers etc.

I'd say for the most part no charges are brought, and if they are people don't get custodial sentences where they're otherwise of good character.

Especially where it's not clear they were the one doing the damage.

I always thought getting a fractured eyesocket was pretty serious, but thats just me.