Courts / Meath / Report

No mandatory requirement to warn juries about accused's "previous good character"

Summary

Martin Sherlock, a 31-year-old man from Navan, Co Meath, has lost his appeal against a rape conviction. The Court of Appeal dismissed his argument that judges are mandatorily required to warn juries about an accused's 'previous good character.' Sherlock had pleaded not guilty to raping a woman at her Dublin home on August 14, 2015, claiming the sex was consensual, though he admitted hearing 'no.' He pleaded guilty to stealing her mobile phone. A Central Criminal Court jury found him guilty of rape, and he was sentenced to five years' imprisonment by Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy in July 2018. In the appeal, President of the Court of Appeal, Mr Justice George Birmingham, stated there is no empirical evidence that a person without previous convictions is more likely to tell the truth. He noted that while defence counsel can argue enhanced credibility or lack of propensity to offend, this does not necessitate a mandatory judicial warning. The court highlighted that Sherlock admitted lying to the victim and stealing her phone, actions inconsistent with 'good character.' The panel, including Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy and Ms Justice Aileen Donnelly, concluded that adopting such a mandatory requirement would create difficulties and is not supported by Irish legal authority. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed, and the original conviction and sentence stand.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: No mandatory requirement to warn juries about accused's "previous good character". Charges or matters: raping the woman at her Dublin home on August 14, 2015; stealing her mobile phone; shoplifting, and the defence was that they had forgotten to pay, one could imagine the defence would "beat the drum about how unlikely it was" that they would engage in deliberate shoplifting, Mr Justice Birmingham said. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

• August 14, 2015 Hearing Or Sentence
• July 2, 2018 Hearing Or Sentence
• 2019-07-31 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal Theft

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Read the original CNI report