A young man will be sentenced today for the manslaughter of a Waterford fisherman in July of 2018.
Jack Power (25) of Shanakiel, Dunmore East died having been stabbed by Dean Kerrie, Portarlington, Laois, who was just 17 at the time.
At a trial earlier this year, Dean Kerrie had pleaded not guilty to the murder of Mr. Power at his then home in Dunmore East.
Mr Power, a local fisherman, died after he was stabbed in the chest during an altercation.
Kerrie has been acquitted of his murder but found guilty of manslaughter by a unanimous jury verdict, following a retrial at the Central Criminal Court.
The accused, said Mr Power had entered his home after 3am and attacked him and his mother.
Following the verdict, Mr. Justice Paul McDermott refused to allow Kerrie to remain on bail and remanded him in custody until a sentencing hearing which is scheduled for today.
The judge ordered a probation report and a victim impact statement from the deceased man's family, which was delivered to the court last week.
Kerrie (21), with an address at St Brigid's Square, Portarlington, Co Laois had pleaded not guilty to murdering Jack Power (25) at Shanakiel, Dunmore East, Co Waterford on July 26th, 2018.
The trial heard Mr Power had been drinking with friends in a local pub and when he left the pub he saw damage to the wing mirror of his car and believed Kerrie was responsible.
He drove to an area near where Kerrie lived, picked up a rock and used it to smash one of the front windows of Kerrie's house.
There were differing accounts of what happened next.
The jury heard a 999 call made by Kerrie at 3.44am on July 26th, in which the teenager said Mr Power had come "in the front door at him" and tried to hit him. He said he had stabbed Mr Power in the chest with a kitchen knife but that he did not mean to.
The deceased's best friend, Christopher Lee, said he saw Mr Power going into the garden of the Kerrie house.
"I saw Dean Kerrie's mother coming towards Jack in the garden and Jack pushed her back and she fell over," Mr Lee said.
He added that he saw Dean in the garden and that he came out towards Jack, turned around and went into the house.
"Jack went into the house after him," Mr Lee said.
The witness then went "close enough to the front door" of the house, where he saw Mr Power and Kerrie in the middle bedroom through the window. "I saw pushing in the bedroom, Jack pushing Dean," he said.
"There was a bit of pushing in the hallway. Jack was only a couple of feet away from me. I saw Dean coming from the kitchen with a knife in his hand. Jack was walking out of the house facing me," he continued.
Mr Lee said the accused shouted something at Mr Power.
"Jack was nearly at the front door. Jack turned around and I noticed Dean moving fast and saw a knife in his hand. I saw Dean push his hand towards Jack's chest. Jack was only after turning around and this happened straight away," he said.
Mr Lee said Mr Power turned and held his chest. "I was standing at the door. I was shouting at Jack, I knew what was after happening. I was in shock. I couldn't believe it," he said.
Mr Justice Paul McDermott told the jury of seven women and four men that there were three verdicts available.
He told them to first consider whether Kerrie honestly believed that Mr Power had entered his home as a trespasser intending to commit a criminal act.
Secondly, he told them to consider whether Kerrie's use of force was necessary to protect himself or others from Mr Power or to prevent a criminal act.
The judge added: "If you find that in the circumstances faced by him, that he applied such force as was objectively reasonable in the circumstances, then he has acted in a lawful manner and is entitled to an acquittal."
"If he used excessive force but had an honest belief that the force he used was necessary, then he is not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter", the judge said.
He added: "If you find that the accused knew the force used was excessive, then you must find him guilty of murder."
