Ireland Young Dumb and Dangerous Episode 2

Youth crime affects everyone in society, but for those it directly touches, it can be devastating. This new series asks how best to deal with Ireland’s young, dumb and dangerous.

Episode 2: ULTRA-VIOLENCE

This can be defined as unnecessary, unprovoked (usually brutal), inappropriate violence in the execution of a crime simply for the thrill and entertainment of it. A growing phenomenon in youth crime sometimes attributed to the proliferation of violence online and onscreen. Examples of ultra-violence include:



Murder – Talented musician Gavin O’Connor’s (22) young life was brought to an abrupt end on 4 June 2011 Lisdoonan, Co. Monaghan. He has been attending a music festival and decided to sleep in the back of his car. Conor McClelland (19) decided to steal the car – when Gavin awoke – McClelland smashed in his head with rocks and then proceeded to run him down to make it look like a hit and run incident. McClelland had pleaded guilty to a charge of assault but denied murder. In 2014 he was found guilty of murder and given a mandatory life sentence as well as a concurrent three-year jail term for the assault charge.



Serious assault with a shotgun – Garda Sgt Mark Clarke was blasted at point blank range in the hand and chest with a sawn off shotgun in Crumlin, Dublin 27th September 2006. Sgt Clarke had been deployed to guard a house after a shot had been fired into the front window. A stolen car pulled up in front of the house and when Sgt Mark Clarke approached it, they pushed the gun out the window and fired at him. A car chase ensued before two of culprits were apprehended. Jonathan Radford (21) the gunman in the incident pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to a total of 13 charges arising out of the incident. Radford received 12 years with two suspended. The juvenile arrested with him received seven years with three suspended.



Aggravated burglary – On 11th November 2014 – City West area, Dublin – a gang of five teenagers broke down the door of a woman’s Dublin home and overpowered her before demanding money. During the early morning raid – they threatened to kill her and cut off her son’s fingers with a meat cleaver. Liam Fox (18) pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary and car theft. Two juveniles, pleaded guilty to the same offences. Fox was jailed for four and a half years. The same sentence was handed down to one of others, while the other co-accused was sentenced to five years in detention.



Series Overview:

Since 2014, figures show there has been an increased number of assaults on our streets. The vast majority of these occur between Friday and Monday, a weekend glut of physical assaults, violent robberies and general disregard for the law. Our nation’s youth are hugely overrepresented when it comes to these violent crimes with 50% of serious assaults being carried out by people under the age of 30. Youth crime affects everyone in society, but for those it directly touches, it can be devastating. Victims and their families are left to pick up the pieces, but for society at large the question remains – how best to deal with Ireland’s young, dumb and dangerous?

Telling the stories of the perpetrators and their victims with first-hand accounts, expert witnesses, investigating officers, archive and reconstruction, we will provide engaging and shocking accounts of contemporary crimes by and for the target audience. The series is being made with the co-operation of An Garda Síochána and the PSNI and will feature topics including one-punch assaults, ultra-violence and feral youths.