26-YEAR-OLD Irishman Steven O’Brien has pled guilty to the fatal assault of fellow countryman Danny McGee outside a pub in the Queens region of a New York last year.
The 21-year-old McGee from Drumlish in Co Longford was found lying on the pavement unresponsive outside The Gaslight Bar just before 4am on Thanksgiving Day, November 22, 2018.
He was taken to hospital but later pronounced dead with a subsequent autopsy determining McGee died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head.
O’Brien, who was resides in Queens, is set to serve six months behind bars as part of a plea deal negotiated with Queens County Criminal Court.
RTE reports that prosecutors told the court how O’Brien punched McGee after the pair became involved in a heated verbal row.
O’Brien wept in court and apologised to McGee’s family, who travelled all the way from Ireland for the trial.
His lawyer Matthew Gartenberg said O’Brien was full of remorse for his actions.
Speaking outside the court, McGee's mother Colleen said expressed relief that the case was finally over even if the pain of losing her son remains.
"Danny will never come back. We miss him every second of every day," she said.
O’Brien has been released on continuing bail.
He will return to court on January 8.
