A teenage boy has signed a guilty plea to a knife attack on a youth who was stabbed seven times outside a Leaving Cert party in Dublin.
More than 150 young people attended an exam results celebration at Vela nightclub, at Liffey Valley, west Dublin, at about 12.30 am on September 3rd.
Emergency services were called, and a youth in his late teens was rushed by ambulance to James Connolly Memorial Hospital in a critical condition.
A 16-year-old boy, whose identity cannot be reported because he is a minor, is accused of assault causing harm, producing a knife during a dispute and violent disorder at the Vela nightclub car park on September 3rd.
There was no application for bail when he first appeared at the Dublin Children's Court nine days after the incident. He has remained in custody on remand since.
In a preliminary hearing last week, Judge Brendan Toale agreed with the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) that the case was too serious to be dealt with in the Children's Court.
Guilty plea
The teenager appeared again on Monday accompanied by his father and barrister Cecilia Ni Choileain. Judge Toale noted from State solicitor Siobhan Matthews that a book of evidence did not need to be served on the youth because he had signed a guilty plea.
The teenager confirmed his signature, and Judge Toale then granted an order sending him forward for sentencing to the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, which has broader sentencing powers.
He will face his next hearing there on December 15. There was no application for bail.
Earlier, Detective Garda David Sheedy gave an outline of the prosecution and played a compilation of CCTV footage from around the venue.
He told the court that the injured party was involved in an altercation with the accused. The defendant "produced a knife and made seven stabbing motions towards the injured party".
The court heard that the victim returned to the front of the premises, where he "collapsed" while the defendant fled.
He had seven stab wounds to his abdomen and leg area, which required two blood transfusions, and he suffered a collapsed lung.
CCTV footage
He spent five days in hospital, and his recovery was described in court last week as an ongoing process. He has to attend physiotherapy for a "deep" injury to his leg. However, Detective Garda Sheedy said that the youth was expected to recover fully, but "it is taking time".
A medical report was handed into court detailing the victim's "front, back and side wounds".
CCTV cameras captured the incident, which resulted in gardai nominating the defendant as a suspect.
Gardaí used special software to "track" the teen in the footage for 40 minutes.
When Detective Garda Sheedy arrested the defendant a week later, he was carrying a knife in his waistband.
The detective said the boy was mannerly, but made no admissions when questioned.
He agreed with Ms Ni Choileain BL that he could not say the defendant instigated the incident.
Pleading for the case to be retained in the Children's Court, counsel asked the judge to note the boy's "fractured" upbringing and how he had been affected following family bereavements.
Until then, counsel said, he had been doing well in school, but afterwards, he started getting into trouble.
However, Judge Toale refused jurisdiction.
