A 73-year-old farmer who admitted he shot a five-year-old boy in the head at a school playground near Enniskillen has been fined £5,000. .
Fergus Cleary of Ballydoolagh Road, Garvary admitted maliciously wounding Darragh Somers at a playground near Enniskillen more than two years ago.
After the court hearing, Darragh's family criticised the fine.
He was shot in the back of the head as he played at St Patrick's Primary School, Mullanaskea in April 2005. Darragh was critically injured and spent two months in hospital. Surgeons carried out two major operations to remove the .22 rifle bullet from his head.
Cleary was arrested two months after the shooting.
He had initially denied maliciously wounding the boy, but in a surprise move last month, his defence team requested the case come before a judge in Dungannon. It was at that hearing, with no journalists or members of the Somers family present, that he pleaded guilty.
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Fergus Cleary changed his plea to guilty
Darragh's father Gerard said the fine was inadequate.
"I thought I was coming here today to get some closure, but it has just left me in a daze," he said.
"What we would have liked was for the man to come personally and apologise."
It is beyond belief that someone can "maliciously'' shoot a five year old child in the head and walk away with nothing more than a £5,000 fine. This is utter madness beyond description.
What value does our society place on our children? The legal answer appears to be around the £5,000 mark!
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