A man has been sentenced to 90 years in prison for attacking an Irish student and her friend with a baseball bat in Chicago.

Relief and a sense of justice were the overwhelming emotions felt by the McShane family after Heriberto Viramontes was found guilty of battering to near death their daughter and sister Natasha.

Irish student Natasha McShane, who suffered serious head injuries after she was attacked by a mugger in Chicago last month, is out of a coma.

STACY JURICH, who has close to 20 staples pinned to the back right side of her head, has spoken of her deep affection for friend Natasha.

A YOUNG Irish woman is in a critical condition in a US hospital after she was subjected to a violent beating with a baseball bat during a robbery in the early hours of Friday.