Courts / Wicklow / Report
Priest has jail sentence for sexual abuse cut on appeal
Summary
The 65‑year‑old former Roman Catholic priest, who had been defrocked and was already serving a seven‑year sentence for sexually abusing a boy, was given an eight‑year consecutive sentence by Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy on 15 May 2017 for six counts of oral rape, defilement and sexual assault of a boy aged 10‑11 at his home between 2005 and 2006. The abuse began shortly after the priest's earlier offence ended in 2006. On appeal, the Court of Appeal, led by Mr Justice George Birmingham, found an error in the sentencing judge's remarks that had led to a 15‑year total sentence. The court reduced the eight‑year term to six years, leaving a total of 13 years in prison. The priest had initially made inappropriate remarks about the victim's puberty, encouraged him to look up sexual subjects online, and progressed to fondling, oral rape and sexual assault in his house, the presbytery and a car. The unnamed 65-year-old was found guilty.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Priest has jail sentence for sexual abuse cut on appeal. Procedural stage: appeal. Findings: Found guilty
When:
- May 15, 2017 Other
- 2005 and 2006 Incident
- 2018-10-22 Publication
Why: The court heard he finds it difficult to hold down a job or to function on a day-to-day basis, and that he avoids his friends and social events because he feels he "just doesn't fit in". Court evidence reported by CNI
Case subjects
Convicted Person
Finding: Found guilty
Outcome: Found guilty; That raised the question as to whether the sentencing judge in the present case, who had decided to impose a consecutive term, had intended a global sentence of 11-and-a-half years rather than the 15 year sentence that resulted.
Places mentioned
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