Adrian Magennis has assault sentence increased to four years

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The Court of Appeal increased Adrian Magennis' sentence to four years, with the final 16 months suspended for two years, on 18 January 2016. The decision followed a successful appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions against his original sentence as unduly lenient.

Magennis had pleaded guilty at Monaghan Circuit Criminal Court to assaulting his ex-partner causing her harm. The assault occurred at her home on 4 January 2014.

Judge John O'Hagan imposed the original 12-month prison sentence on 3 June 2015. The report said the maximum sentence was five years' imprisonment.

Giving judgment, Mr Justice Garrett Sheehan said the original term represented a substantial departure from the norm and the offence warranted a substantially higher sentence. He sat with Mr Justice Alan Mahon and Mr Justice John Edwards.

Magennis was required to enter his own €100 bond to keep the peace and be of good behaviour throughout the two-year suspended period. He agreed to be bound by those terms. The proceedings were reported on 18 January 2016.