Courts / Dublin / Report
5.5-year jail sentence for abuse of five sisters not excessive, appeal court rules
Summary
The Court of Appeal upheld a 5‑½‑year jail sentence for a 55‑year‑old man who abused five sisters between 1980 and 1988. The abuse began when the man was 12 and ended when he was 20. The sisters were aged seven to 13 at the time of the abuse. He pleaded guilty to one count of rape and six counts of indecent assault. In February 2022 he received a total of six years and six months' imprisonment, with the final 12 months suspended. The judge ordered the three‑and‑a‑half‑year rape sentence and the three‑year indecent‑assault sentence to run consecutively. The appeal argued that consecutive sentences ignored mitigating factors such as the offender's age, cognitive difficulties, lack of insight and remorse, but the Court of Appeal rejected the appeal, finding the judge had carefully considered all mitigating factors and that the consecutive sentences were appropriate and not unduly lenient.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: 5.5-year jail sentence for abuse of five sisters not excessive, appeal court rules. Procedural stage: appeal
When:
- November 2021 Incident
- February 2022 Incident
- 1980 to 1988 Incident
- 2023-06-09 Publication
Why: The man (55), who cannot be named in order to protect his victims' identities, began abusing the girls when he was 12 at the beginning of the 1980s, with the abuse stopping when he was 20 years old. CNI source report
Case subjects
Appellant
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: In February 2022, he was sentenced to a total of six years and six months' imprisonment with the final 12 months suspended. Mr Justice Edwards said the trial judge had sentenced the man in "an appropriate, careful and considered manner" and then dismissed the appeal.
Places mentioned
- Court of Appeal
- Central Criminal Court
Topics
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