Air Conditioning - Inside fan blowing, but outside unit not running

Hello! I'm having a problwm with the original unit that came with my house (built in '96). In the outside unit my Dad discovered a wire (or set of wires) that had a hole rubbed in it. We put a vacuum on the system & found no leaks & no moisture. We refilled the unit & it initially started up like normal. Then suddenly the outside unit kicked off, while the inside fan continued to run, blowing warm air only. He found that the cicuit braker in my garage had been tripped, most likely when the wires shorted out or whatever. Each time we tried to restart it the same thing happened, the outside uniy would start, but then stop working almost immediately. He thinks it sounds like a valve or something is getting stuck somewhere, like in the compressor maybe? I'm not sure what to do next. Any suggestions, tips, advice, comments?? Thanx!

I think it's time to call a professional service person.