Man jailed over Temple Bar attack that left victim in need of life saving surgery

A 24-year-old who was part of a group that inflicted life-threatening injuries on a man during an assault along a laneway near Temple Bar in Dublin has been jailed for three years and nine months.

Jordan Maguire (24), of no fixed abode, was the only person gardaí were able to successfully identify having viewed CCTV footage of the December 21st, 2022 assault. He was arrested in February of last year.

Carol Doherty, prosecuting, told the court it was accepted that while Maguire could be seen striking at the victim with an implement, he was not responsible for the more serious head and facial injuries inflicted. She said the victim suffered slash wounds to his face, puncture wounds to his back, neck and arms and needed life-saving surgery.

The court heard the man was down a laneway near Temple Bar when he heard a person shouting at him. He could not understand what they were saying but understood the comments were directed at him. He heard someone say, “get the blade” before he saw six young men walking towards him.

Maguire pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assault causing harm to the man. He has 51 previous convictions including for assaults.

Judge Martin Nolan said a victim impact statement, read into the record by the man’s partner, was “comprehensive and truthful” about the effect of the attack. In it, the man described the assault as “a senseless act of violence that left me for dead”.

“It has shattered my life and I am living in a constant state of worry and sadness,” he said, adding that he now suffers from anxiety and avoids large social gatherings as he “constantly faces intrusive questions about his scars”. The man referred to the fact that most of the perpetrators “are still roaming free” which has left him with “a deep-seated frustration”.

The judge accepted Maguire’s guilty plea and acknowledged that unfortunate events in his own life “probably caused him to take the wrong turn” but he added that the attack was at the highest level of seriousness for such offences.

Oisín Clarke, defending, said his client’s mother died suddenly in her sleep and “things went downhill” after that. He said Maguire started drinking and taking drugs regularly and ended up living on the streets after being asked to leave the family home.

Mr Clarke agreed with the judge that his client had “taken an active part in the assault” but noted that Maguire was not responsible for the most serious injuries. “All of the assailants were involved together in attacking him,” said the judge. “It could not be more clear.”