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18-year-old Irishman charged with first child murder since 2005

By
DARA KELLY,
IrishCentral.com Staff Writer

Published Monday, August 30, 2010, 8:02 AM
Updated Monday, August 30, 2010, 11:38 AM

 

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Michaela Davis, the first child to be murdered in Ireland since 2005
Michaela Davis, the first child to be murdered in Ireland since 2005

Read more - First child murder in Ireland since 2005

An 18-year-old Dublin man has appeared in court this morning charged in connection with the murder of a 12-year-old Irish schoolgirl at Porterstown Road, west Dublin on Saturday.

Jonathan Byrne, of Lohunda Downs, Clonsilla, Dublin, appeared before Dublin District Court this morning accused of the murder of Michaela Davis, whose body was found on a bank of the Royal Canal on Saturday afternoon.

Detective Sergeant Daniel Callaghan told the court that Byrne was arrested at 11.30 PM on Sunday night and charged at Blanchardstown Garda (Police) station on the north side of the city shortly afterward. The court heard Byrne made no reply when charged.

A post mortem showed that Davis had been attacked, sexually abused and strangled. Byrne, who was dressed in jeans, white runners and a grey hoodie top, did not speak during the brief hearing.

There were no objections to an application for legal aid by defense solicitor Eugene Dunne. The solicitor also requested and was granted medical attention for Byrne.

Judge Patrick Clyne remanded Byrne in custody to appear at Cloverhill District Court on Friday, September 3.

The principal of Luttrellstown Community College in Blanchardstown has said that a psychological support service for students are now in place. A 'critical incident management team' has also been set up to provide support for pupils following Davis’ murder. Daviswas a first-year student at Luttrellstown and attended her first classes last Wednesday.

The principal of Saint Mochta's National School, where Davis had attended until June, said she was ‘a lovely child who had so much to give and to live for.’

Read more - First child murder in Ireland since 2005

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12 Comments

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Posted by Hurlyburly on Aug 31, 2010, 12:26 PM EDT
I'm outraged. A little girl's life robbed from her. Familiy and friends worlds destroyed. Relieved that Gardai seem to have their man (obviously presumption of innocence applies but I'm given to understand that the suspect they charged turned himself in). Very difficult to suppress my furious and murderous feelings towards him. Not a right winger, believe in justice and rehabilitation, and am aware that many sexual crimes involve some degree of psychopathology but I really hope the perpetrator serves a proper sentence i.e. 20-25 years. It's the least society should expect. It would serve a base satisfaction to publically flog him but that would demean society as much as him
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Posted by Madeleine on Aug 30, 2010, 06:12 PM EDT
I am so sorry to hear this, Prayers going out for the fmily . I have never heard of any children being killed in Ireland, it always seemed like such a safe place to most of us here in the states.We have high crime here in the City of Chicago. little children shot in front of their homes on a weekly basis because of some gang war. One thing that speaks highly for your police, they sure caught him fast enough, that's one murderer off the street.
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Posted by MavisPike on Aug 30, 2010, 05:22 PM EDT
Glad to see this site responsibly pointing out that such murders are very rare. The media -- and posters on the net -- very easily give in to hysteria when considering such awful crimes. I refer you to the quasi-fascist ravings by Jimmy below.
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Posted by jimmy12003 on Aug 30, 2010, 04:31 PM EDT
we need justice in this country! 1, a public hanging for the little bas-tard who done this! 2, then one after the other, hang all the rapists, murderers and pedophiles, that we have stocked up, costing the taxpayer each year, feeding and clothing the cu-nts! 3, you have to ask the parents, why they would let a twelve yearold girl leave the house around midnite, in the middle of a knac-ker camp like the place she is from?
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Posted by jamieLM on Aug 30, 2010, 03:37 PM EDT
Don't be ridiculous, Michael Collins. I'm just disgusted that there are so MANY of them that commit the kind of crimes against women and children that they deserve to be there and the number just seems to be increasing. These crimes may be as old as history, but I think we have a record number of psychopaths, sociopaths, pedophiles, and serial murders and rapists because of the culture and society we live in today.
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Posted by barbbq1 on Aug 30, 2010, 12:54 PM EDT
So sorry for her family. My thoughts and prayers are with them. Was the child murder in 2005 also in Dublin?
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Posted by Yerffac on Aug 30, 2010, 12:19 PM EDT
Irish courts let criminals get away with everything--including murder.
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Posted by Searlit on Aug 30, 2010, 11:33 AM EDT
These crimes are a old as history, but since the 'war on drugs' was declared, in the 80's, law enforcement's focus has been on jailing as many drug addicts as they could find. They tend to keep the drug-offenders locked up much longer than the violent criminals. They often let violent perpetrators back out on the streets early, due to overcrowding of prisons. De-criminalize drugs and put the addicts in a clinic. This would allow the police to go back to chasing violent criminals and keeping them in prison so they can't re-offend. Privatizing prisons has also escalated incarceration, worsening the problem. Put the prison system under the state government's jurisdiction again, to save lives and money.
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Posted by manhattan on Aug 30, 2010, 10:45 AM EDT
I hope the Irish courts are not as easy on him as they were with Larry Murphy. I can't imagine the pain those parents are going through. I don't ever remember so many sex crimes and murders of children. Here in America it's something that happens to many times. Can someone tell me did these crimes always happen and we just didn't hear about it before the internet?
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Posted by michaelcollins on Aug 30, 2010, 10:21 AM EDT
jamieLM....what did you expect the special place in hell to be full of.....saints?????
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Posted by jamieLM on Aug 30, 2010, 09:38 AM EDT
Agree with you irishbob. Unfortunately, that special place is full of "psychos" like this guy.
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Posted by irishbob on Aug 30, 2010, 09:13 AM EDT
There is a special place in hell for those who hurt women and children, and I hope they are warming up a seat for this guy right now.
 


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