Man who set fire to house jailed for 1 year 

By Claire Henry 

A man has been jailed for a year for setting fire to his partner’s family home, causing it and two adjoining houses to be demolished. 

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Brian McKee (29) of St Aongus Park, Tallaght in Dublin, pleaded guilty to criminal damage by arson to a house at Heather View Lawn, Tallaght on July 27, 2018. He has no previous convictions and has not come to garda attention since this incident. 

Garda Josh Doran previously told Joe Mulrean, BL, prosecuting, that on the morning in question, McKee’s partner woke to find him standing at the bottom of her bed covered in blood and with a cut to his stomach. 

McKee had been home all evening and had been minding his child while she went out with friends.

The court heard that when his partner returned home, he believed she was giving him the cold shoulder before she went to bed. 

McKee, who had not drunk in a few months, drank a can of Coors Light and some gin from the bottle in order to knock himself out and sleep.

He believes that he may have also taken cocaine. 

 McKee was seen by neighbours just after 5 am standing outside the house holding a long-bladed knife and was covered in blood.

His partner and child left the house and went to the house next door.

The gardai were called, and just as they arrived, witnesses saw that the house in question was on fire. 

Gda Doran said that he heard a crashing noise coming from inside the house and found McKee lying at the bottom of the stairs, unconscious.

Gda Doran pulled McKee out of the house and was then informed by McKee that his child and someone called Brian were still in the house. 

By this time, the house was engulfed in fire, and gardai attempted to enter the house.

McKee took off his clothes and attempted to run into the house.

The gardai were still of the belief that a child was in the burning house and had to tackle McKee to the ground and have him detained in a patrol van. 

The court heard that the fire spread through the attic to a neighbouring house, which was severely burnt and had smoke and fire water damage.

The house on the opposite side had “radiated heat and smoke damage”. 

All three houses were privately owned and had to be knocked to the ground and rebuilt.

The owners of the house are the parents of McKee’s partner who were away in Spain at the time. 

Garda technical experts stated that the fire started on the couch in the living room.

Pictures of the houses were handed into the court. 

McKee was interviewed twice and answered all questions.

He was asked by gardai if he had set fire to the house, to which he replied, “I’d say so”.

He said that he could not remember lighting the fire and described it as “completely foggy, like a haze”. 

A victim impact statement was read to the court by counsel from the son of one of the adjacent houses, which was damaged by the fire.

It said: “I was living in the house with my parents, partner and child so we could save for our first home.

“We had bought furniture for our new home which we stored in the attic.

“The attic was the first part of the house to catch fire. 

 “We had to take our baby out of its cot and go outside due to the fire.

“This was the worst year of my life”. 

The owner of one of the adjacent homes read his own victim impact statement, which stated, “My wife and I (lived in) one of the the three houses destroyed by the fire”. 

“We lost family belongings which cannot be replaced, and we ended up out of pocket, which caused arguments within the home.” 

“I had to take time off work unpaid, which caused difficulties, and I lost out on wages of €2,600.” 

The man said that his home insurance did not cover the entire cost of repair, and he had to pay €11,000. 

Gda Doran agreed with James Dwyer, SC, defending, that this case had a difficult procedural history and that the plea was of benefit and entered in advance of a trial date. 

Mr Dwyer said his client began drinking at the age of 12 and began to take drugs in his mid-teens.

He has also undergone rehabilitation in the past and supplied urine analyses, which were negative for drugs. 

Counsel said McKee had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and has suffered from mental health issues.

Medical reports and letters describing McKee as a hardworking, kind and a caring man were handed into the court. 

Mr Dwyer said his client is living with his family and has their support.

He said he has demonstrated that he has stayed out of trouble since this incident and described it as a “once-off.”

He said McKee has insight and understanding and is a decent young man. 

Judge Pauline Codd sentenced McKee yesterday.

She noted that he had a long history of psychiatric difficulties, including Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder, which had been aggravated by his cocaine and alcohol misuse. 

“This was a most serious offence and involved very serious recklessness,” she said.

“It’s accepted he did not intend to harm anybody or the property. But he was in a state of self-induced psychosis on the night.” 

She said that to set fire to a house in which his partner and child were present, a terraced house where it spread to two neighbouring houses, involved criminality of a high degree. 

“The fright of being woken up in the middle of the night with your house on fire cannot be understated,” she said. 

She took into consideration a letter from his estranged partner’s parents, who wrote to highlight the hard work he had done on his mental health and the bond he has with his child. 

She imposed a prison sentence of seven years, but suspended six years on a number of conditions, including that he engage with addiction services and fully cooperate with his mental health care plan. 

An amount of €3,000 he had brought to court is to be paid to the neighbour whose home insurance had not covered the full cost of rebuilding.