Courts / Tipperary / Report

Man who sexually abused step daughter as mother slept has jail term cut

Date
2021-06-15
Stage
Appeal
Primary locality
Tipperary
County
Tipperary

Summary

In a 2021 Court of Appeal decision, a 41‑year‑old man's five‑and‑a‑half‑year jail term, originally imposed for two sexual assaults on his step‑daughter, was reduced by two years. The first assault occurred in early 2015 when the man, while seated beside the bed, fondled the girl's breasts while her mother slept. The second assault took place in mid‑2016, after a pub visit, when the man again forced his hand under the girl's t‑shirt. The original sentences—five years with 18 months suspended for the first offence and five years with three years suspended for the second—were set to run consecutively. The Court of Appeal, citing the severity of the offences and the victim's severe impact, removed the suspended portions and set concurrent custodial terms of two years for the first offence and three‑and‑a‑half years for the second, back‑dating them to the original sentencing date.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Man who sexually abused step daughter as mother slept has jail term cut. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

Case subjects

Unnamed 16-year-old

Convicted Person

Outcome: A circuit criminal court jury convicted the man on March 11, 2020 and he was sentenced by Judge Patrick Meghan on May 28 last year. The 41-year-old was jailed for five years with 18 months suspended on the first offence and for five years with three suspended on the second, with both sentences to run consecutively, resulting in a net five-and-a-half year custodial sentence.

Places mentioned

Court Venue
  • Court of Appeal
Secondary Mention

Topics

Stage Appeal Violent Crime

Related court reports

Read the original CNI report

Correction or retraction request

If a fact, identity, locality or legal outcome needs review, email the newsroom with this report's details prefilled.

Email a correction request