WAYNE O’DONOGHUE has paid his debt to society and should be allowed the privacy to get on with the rest of his life without publicly having to relive his tragic mistakes.

THE parents of slain schoolboy Robert Holohan maintained a dignified silence yesterday.

OPINIONS on Wayne O’Donoghue and his release from prison were offered reluctantly yesterday in the town still aching from his crime.

The man who killed Co Cork schoolboy Robert Holohan three years ago has been released from the Midlands Prison in Portlaoise this morning.

The hometown of the young student, Wayne O’Donoghue, convicted of killing schoolboy Robert Holohan is fully prepared for his imminent release, it was claimed tonight.

AN APPLICATION should have been made for the immediate release of Wayne O’Donoghue after the mother of Robert Holohan made her victim impact statement, a senior counsel has said.

An application should have been made for the release of Wayne O’Donoghue immediately after Majella Holohan’s victim impact statement, according to the barrister who represented O’Donoghue during his trial for the murder of 11-year-old Robert Holohan.

Former Justice Minister Nora Owen has said that High Court Judge Paul Carney was more sympathetic to the situation of convicted killer Wayne O’Donoghue than towards to the family of his victim 11-year-old Robert Holohan.

WHY shouldn’t Majella Holohan know exactly what happened to her child, the child she gave birth to and nourished and cared for over 12 years?

Minister for Justice Brian Lenihan has today called for a "period of calm" following the controversy ignited by the remarks made by one of Ireland's most senior judges this week.

VICTIMS of serious crime must continue to be allowed to reveal in court how they have been affected by their ordeal, campaigners said yesterday.

A MAN whose 19-year-old daughter was murdered last year has criticised the Victim Impact Statement process as “disgraceful” and said there was too much consideration for the perpetrators of violent crime.

EVEN though I wasn’t identified by name, Mr Justice Paul Carney clearly referred to me and my victim impact statement in Ennis in January 2006 at the sentence of Wayne O’Donoghue for the unlawful killing of my son, Robert.

Mr Justice PAUL CARNEY’S remarks in relation to victim impact procedures focused on extremely sensitive matters.

It is not fair to criticise me for saying how the killing of my son impacted on me, Majella Holohan, mother of murdered school boy Robert said today.

Tánaiste Brian Cowen has said the Government has no plans to change the law relating to the way victim impact statements are made in court.

The mother of Robert Holohan, the 11-year-old schoolboy killed in Co Cork in January 2005, has reportedly criticised remarks made by the presiding judge in the killer's trial.

The father of schoolboy Robert Holohan today spoke of how much he dreads his son’s anniversary.

The mother of Cork schoolboy Robert Holohan said today that she feels the judicial system failed her family.

THE Irish Examiner has taken one of the top honours in the annual Law Society awards for journalism.

Self-confessed child-killer Wayne O’Donoghue, who strangled his young neighbour in 2004, will serve only a four-year jail sentence for the killing, the appeal court ruled today.

WHEN Majella and Mark Holohan entered Midleton Courthouse for the inquest into their son’s death, yesterday, their determined bearing left no doubt that they wanted further answers as to what happened Robert Holohan at the hands of Wayne O’Donoghue on January 4, 2005.

The inquest into the death of 11-year-old Robert Holohan in Midleton was adjourned indefinitely this afternoon.

THE judge who sentenced child killer Wayne O’Donoghue failed to take into account key features of the Corkman’s characteristics and behaviour in deciding how long he should serve in prison, it was claimed in the Court of Criminal Appeal.

THE grieving mother of schoolboy Robert Holohan yesterday reportedly criticised the boy’s killer for speaking of his remorse over the death.

THE family of Robert Holohan said they were “delighted” yesterday after the Director of Public Prosecution lodged an appeal against the length of the sentence handed down to Wayne O’Donoghue.

THE Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has until the end of today to lodge an appeal against the four-year jail term handed to Wayne O’Donoghue.

THE solicitor who defended Wayne O’Donoghue called last night for a complete overhaul of the victim impact statement system.

THE solicitor who defended Wayne O’Donoghue is set to give an impassioned defence of the rights of victims to speak out in court about their ordeal.

The parents of murdered schoolboy Robert Holohan have written to the Cork County Coroner to ask for his killer to be summoned at the inquest into his death.

IN the last week or so, the country has seen unprecedented attention focused on the Wayne O’Donoghue trial. Offices, pubs and living rooms across the nation all became venues for heated debate.

JUDGES sitting in murder, manslaughter and sex cases could curtail what victims or their families can tell the courts about their ordeals.

HEARTBROKEN mum Majella Holohan has requested the Director of Public Prosecutions to consider an appeal against the jail sentence handed down to her son Robert’s killer.

THE Holohan and O’Donoghue families clashed yesterday, both enlisting solicitors in a war of words over what really happened on the day Robert Holohan was killed.

TELEPHONE evidence in the Wayne O’Donoghue trial was crucial in establishing the whereabouts of Robert Holohan on the day of his death.

THE grandfather of schoolboy Robert Holohan has branded the four-year sentence handed down to his killer as “disgraceful” and believes he should have been given at least 10 years in jail.

THE Irish Examiner is interviewing Wayne O’Donoghue’s solicitor, Frank Buttimer, when another phone in his office rings. It’s O’Donoghue.

BUSINESS continued as usual in the busy East Cork town of Midleton, but in cafes and restaurants faces were buried in newspapers as people pored over coverage of a case that has clearly divided the town.

Child killer Wayne O’Donohgue has been left devastated by claims his semen was found on the body of his 11-year-old victim, his solicitor revealed today.

“NO words I say will console those parents,” said grieving mother Annette Wall. She was expressing sympathy for Majella and Mark Holohan after the killer of their son Robert was jailed for four years yesterday.

A SEMEN sample found on Robert Holohan’s body was a DNA match for Wayne O’Donoghue — with only a 77-million-to-one chance of error, a forensic expert found.

THE packed courtroom of the Central Criminal Court in Ennis was taken completely by surprise when Majella Holohan, the victim’s mother, departed from her prepared victim impact statement to describe semen found on her 11-year-old son’s body, before the killer was sentenced.

IN the eight days when her son was missing, Majella Holohan quietly suffered the horrors of imagination.

EVERY parent will empathise with Majella Holohan’s determined bid to raise hard questions in yesterday’s dramatic victim impact statement before sentence was passed on Wayne O’Donoghue for the manslaughter of her 11-year-old son Robert a year ago this month.