A 22-year-old man has been jailed for nine years for manslaughter after a fatal stabbing in Ballymun in Dublin in 2006.
Bernard Christopher Joyce, also known as Brian Joyce, of Carton Road in Poppintree, Dublin, was found not guilty of murder last November.
However, he was found guilty of the manslaughter of 26-year-old James Donoghue as part of a joint enterprise with two others at Dane Road, Ballymun, on 10 September 2006.
He was also convicted of violent disorder and production of a knife.
The trial heard that Joyce and two others got into a row after they were refused entry to a 21st birthday party at a house in Ballymun.
They later returned with knives and, during a fight, Mr Donoghue was fatally stabbed.
In a victim impact statement Mr Donoghue's mother described the effect his death had on the family.
She said all members of the family had difficulty sleeping and his youngest sister, who was 13 at the time of his death, had not yet returned to school.
His fiancée said her birthdays would never be the same again as Mr Donoghue had died on her birthday.
In a letter to the court Joyce said: ‘Please believe when I say I am not here to make excuses but to say how ashamed I am. I do not expect forgiveness; I simply want to say how sorry I am.’
He said he had engaged in a moment of madness and had brought shame on his family and community. He said the Traveller and settled communities in Ballymun had always had a good relationship and he hoped it had not been affected by this.
Mr Justice George Bermingham said he regarded the offence as at the upper end of the scale.
He said the accused had chosen to arm himself with a knife, which was a truly fearsome weapon, and was involved in provoking a violent confrontation.
Taking into account the mitigating factors of his youth, previous good record and his genuine remorse, he said the appropriate sentence was 12 years with the final three suspended.
He also imposed concurrent sentences of three years each for violent disorder and production of a knife.
