Courts / Ireland / Report

Jury unable to reach verdict in historic sex abuse trial

Summary

A High Court jury could not reach a verdict after a six‑day trial and over six hours of deliberation in a damages action brought by a man in his early 70s who alleges he was sexually and physically abused by a former teacher and a Roman Catholic religious order in the 1950s. The plaintiff claimed the teacher had orally raped him on two occasions, once in a classroom and once in the cloakroom, and had physically assaulted him for various reasons. He also alleged that the religious order failed to protect him. The teacher, now in his 90s, denied all allegations, calling them "rubbish" and insisting the abuse never happened. The religious order also denied the claims. The judge discharged the jury, exempted them from duty for ten years, and said the case would be heard by another jury at a future date, with priority given to scheduling a hearing.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Jury unable to reach verdict in historic sex abuse trial. Procedural stage: trial

When:

• 2022-07-08 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Trial

Read the original CNI report