2025-01-23
Cathal Crotty's wholly suspended sentence 'sends out wrong message', DPP tells appeal
Stage: Appeal
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Photo: Collins) The wholly suspended sentence imposed on soldier Cathal Crotty, who beat Natasha O'Brien unconscious on a public street after she asked him to stop shouting homophobic abuse, sends out the wrong message regarding society's attitude towards such crimes, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has argued. In an application to overturn the original sentence against Crotty (22) on the grounds that it is unduly lenient, Lily Buckley BL for the DPP told the Court of Appeal this morning that a prison sentence is required to deter others who might consider committing similar crimes.