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Killer jailed for three and a half years A

A man who battered his second cousin to death in what a judge described as an "extreme over-reaction" has been jailed for three and a half years.

John Stanley Foster (31) showed no emotion yesterday as he was sentenced for the manslaughter of former Irish League footballer David Mills, pictured. Mr Justice Burgess said that although he accepted Mr mills had been the initial aggressor, Foster had landed around 13 punches on him, some while Mr mills lay defenceless on the ground on Ballynahinch's main Street.

The judge said it was a tragic aspect of the case that the killing on September 30 2012 followed a chance encounter - the pair met when mr mills stopped for a Chinese take-away while travelling home from a night out - and that a "few minutes" in time difference would have had vastly different consequences.

Foster, of Corrigs Road in newcastle, had been on trial at Downpatrick Crown Court for mr mills's murder but proceedings were halted when he admitted manslaughter.

The jury had heard how mr mills (47), a former Irish League winner with Portadown, sustained head injuries including fractures to his neck and jaw when the pair fought in what Frank O'Donoghue QC, prosecuting, described as a "combustion of emotion".

He said Foster's guilty plea to the lesser charge was accepted because "there is a reasonable possibility that the fatal blows were administered at a time when the necessary specific intent had not been formed by the defendant".

The judge said victim- impact reports from mr mills's family were a "moving testimony to the devastation and trauma" they have endured.

One family member wrote of how "a lot of joy has gone out of our lives".

Ordering Foster to spend three and a half years on supervised licence after his release, the judge said the father-of-four was being given "substantial credit" for his guilty plea, reflecting a "high level of remorse".

The judge gave Foster credit for having remained at the scene but said the offence was aggravated because of his "overreaction" and because he had ignored previous warnings about his behaviour while drunk.

Foster has a record for public violence with convictions for disorderly behaviour and assaults dating back to his teenage years.

Outside the court there was a tense atmosphere while the families loitered in the foyer. After one of Foster's relatives directed a comment towards Mr Mills's family a police officer and a court security worker stepped in to keep the peace. Neither Mr Mills's sister nor his brother wished to comment on the sentence.