Courts / Longford / Report

Suspended sentence for man who pleaded guilty to defiling girl (15) when he was 16

Summary

A 20-year-old man from Limerick has received a fully suspended two-year sentence at the Central Criminal Court after pleading guilty to the defilement of a 15-year-old girl in Longford in June 2013. The offence occurred when the defendant was 16 years old. He initially pleaded not guilty to rape in October 2017, but changed his plea hours into his trial. Mr Justice Paul Butler noted that the defendant and complainant were "effectively peers" and that imprisonment would serve no purpose. The judge accepted the victim's impact statement as credible, in which she described the lasting psychological harm caused by the incident. The suspended sentence is conditional on the defendant attending probation sessions and group therapy to address the nature of his offence. He must also maintain no contact with the victim. The defendant, who has no previous convictions, is currently in full-time employment.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Suspended sentence for man who pleaded guilty to defiling girl (15) when he was 16. Charges or matters: one count of rape, and a jury was empanelled to hear his trial, but hours later he entered a guilty plea to a count of defilement. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• June 23, 2013 Hearing Or Sentence
• October 2017 Incident
• 2018-01-22 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Sentence

Related court reports

• No compensation for asthmatic garda ordered back on beat during Covid-19 surge
• Court refuses to reduce sentence for brothel keeper caught with child abuse material
• Cage fighter convicted of Shannon murder gets hearing date for miscarriage of justice application
• Strokestown assault conviction overturned by High Court
• Cage fighter seeks to have murder conviction declared a miscarriage of justice
• Men jailed over €415k cannabis grow houses in Galway

Read the original CNI report