Jail term reduced after party stabbing

Senior judges reduced the six-year term imposed on Dean Hassall for the drink and drug-fuelled attack at a house in Bangor, Co Down by 12 months.

Mr Justice Maguire said his actions were premeditated, but held the starting point in the sentencing process had been too high.

Earlier this year Hassall pleaded guilty to wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The 30-year-old had been at a house party when a row broke out in the early hours of June 30, 2018.

Hassall, of an undisclosed address, was struck on the head before going to the kitchen to arm himself with a potato peeler. Mobile phone footage then showed him stab a man twice at the front door of the property, the Court of Appeal heard.

The victim sustained wounds through his upper lip and nose, as well as the chest area. The trial judge sentenced him to six years - half to be served in custody and half on licence.Ruling on the appeal, Mr Justice Maguire stressed the need for deterrent sentences.

“This is yet another case of a young male... having consumed alcohol and taken drugs, arming himself with a knife and then using it to stab another young male not once, but twice, causing injuries which while serious, could have given rise to much greater harm,” he said.

“His action was premeditated and not carried out in a blind rage or without consideration.” However, he held that the starting point for the sentencing should have been lower. “The outcome accordingly is a determinate sentence of five years,” he said.