Courts / Ireland / Report

Father's conviction for raping special needs daughter is upheld

Summary

The Court of Appeal has dismissed the conviction appeal of an unnamed 59-year-old man, upholding his July 2019 Central Criminal Court jury verdict. He was convicted of two counts of rape under Section 2, one count of rape under Section 4, and two counts of sexual assault under Section 2 of the Criminal Law (Rape) Act 1990. The offences, involving his special needs daughter, occurred between January 2003 and December 2004, and in January 2011. The appellant argued that the trial judge, Ms Justice Creedon, failed to provide an adequate corroboration warning regarding evidence from the complainant's mother. In a judgment delivered by Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, sitting with Mr Justice George Birmingham and Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy, the court found no error in the trial judge's approach to the potentially corroborative evidence. Consequently, the conviction stands. Following the judgment, defence counsel Colman Cody SC informed the court that the man intends to appeal against the length of his sentence. He was originally sentenced on February 3, 2020, to 12 years' imprisonment, with the final year suspended on strict conditions, resulting in an effective custody period of 11 years. He was also registered as a sex offender. The matter regarding the sentence remains pending as the appeal against the conviction has been concluded.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Father's conviction for raping special needs daughter is upheld. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

• July 2019 Incident
• January 2003 Incident
• December 2004 Incident
• January 2011 Incident
• February 3 2020 Incident
• 2022-07-11 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal Violent Crime

Read the original CNI report