Pair jailed for attack that left man with fatal brain injury

James Small, 31, and Ryan Kearney, 26 were both jailed for four years

Two men who attacked a father leaving him with a fatal brain injury have each been jailed for four years for his death.

James Small, 31, and Ryan Kearney, 26, attacked Kevin Kennedy after a gathering at a unit at the Century Business Park in Glasgow's Kinning Park on October 5 2022.

The 36-year-old father died after suffering a bleed on the brain.

Kearney and Small denied the charges but were found guilty of culpable homicide at the High Court in Glasgow.

Judge Sean Murphy KC said he accepted neither had intended to kill Mr Kennedy and what occurred was a "tragedy".

He said the victim had been making a "nuisance" of himself, but that was "no excuse or explanation" for what then happened.

The court heard both had the opportunity to walk away, but that comments to others indicated an "intention to have a fight" with Mr Kennedy.

Shortly before the attack, Small was seen shaking hands with the victim and that Mr Kennedy took hold of him, pulling him towards him.

Kevin Kennedy died after suffering a bleed on the brain

Judge Murphy then stated: "It is at that point the CCTV camera automatically turned away from the scene.

"This was just before Mr Kennedy was punched on the head by you, Kearney, and kicked by you, Small, as the evidence indicates."

The judge said a blow to the head led to the fatal injury.

He said Mr Kennedy's family had "suffered greatly" by what happened.

The victim was a relative of Stephen Jamieson - the former right-hand man of drug dealer Jamie "Iceman" Stevenson.

Small's lawyer George Gebbie earlier said he had displayed "genuine regret".

Tony Lenehan KC, defending Kearney, said the killing was "a tragedy from every perspective".

The advocate said Kearney was likely to find prison difficult as "there will be those that will not be satisfied with (the judge's) punishment."