A 37-year-old father of four has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for killing a teenager in Dundalk, Co Louth, two years ago.
Douglas Ward, with an address at Loughantarve, Knockbridge, Co Louth, admitted the manslaughter of 18-year-old Niall Dorr.
Mr Dorr was acting as a peacemaker and trying to break up a row when Ward attacked him.
Mr Justice Paul Carney said it was totally unacceptable to kick someone in the head leading to brain damage.
He said it was an aggravating factor that Ward was on bail at the time he committed the offence.
Judge Carney suspended the final three years of the sentence
Mr Dorr was with two friends on Castle Road in Dundalk on 13 October 2010 when a group, including Ward, approached them at around 9pm and a row broke out.
Mr Dorr, a champion kickboxer, was trying to stop the row and keep the peace when Ward repeatedly punched and kicked him in the head.
Ward did not know Mr Dorr, but he ripped the teenager's shirt off him and continued to attack him even when he was unresponsive.
He left zigzag shoe marks on the teenager's forehead and the side of his head after he punched, stamped and kicked him.
Senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Patrick Marry said Mr Dorr sustained irrevocable brain damage.
Ward, who had been in Dundalk for a bail hearing, had been drinking since the pubs opened that morning and after the attack went to an off-licence and bought more drink.
In a victim impact statement, Niall's father described the killing as cruel and heartless.
David Dorr said he hopes that when Ward looks at his children he will think of the young man he killed and when he looks at his brothers he will think of the brother he killed.
He said Niall's bedroom is still the same, nothing has changed; his picture is on his desk and every day the family say good morning and goodnight to him.
He also said if what happened to Niall served to wake people up to the tragedies they bestow on others, it would in some small way help the family.
But this he said was a flawed hope because society is moving on to repeat again and again the very act of poison that occurred that night - the length and breadth of the country.
God help them, he said, who will come behind us who have yet to begin that process.
Mr Dorr said: "Niall was the peacemaker and didn't want harm to come to anyone, but little did he know that he was dealing with bloodthirsty thugs.
"To knock a person unconscious and then to repeatedly bang his head off the ground, and kick his lifeless body to a pulp is just the stuff of animals.
"The defendant may have been convicted of what is legally termed manslaughter, but we will always be of the view that it was a savage killing.
"Niall was an organ donor, and his legacy is that five people are still alive today after receiving transplants of his organs. We would urge everybody to follow his example and carry an organ donor card.
"Nothing can ever bring Niall back, or take away the pain and suffering which we have endured since that terrible night of 13 October 2010.
"To his genuine friends who miss him, just as much as we do, we have a place in our hearts for you all. Your love for him has shone through even in the darkest days, and now we say thanks.
"A new chapter in our lives begins now and sadly, Niall is not in it. We will hold very dear his memory, and never let go."
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