Courts / Ireland / Report
Father who repeatedly raped daughter (9) to remain behind bars
Summary
In a Court of Appeal hearing on 10 October 2024, the appeal of a 59‑year‑old man convicted of 11 offences against his nine‑year‑old daughter was dismissed. The man had been jailed for 14 years after a Central Criminal Court trial in November 2022, where a jury found him guilty of repeated rape, oral rape, sexual assault, false imprisonment, threatening to kill and forcing a child to watch sexual activity. The appeal argued that the trial judge erred by not stopping the trial after the prosecution case, by failing to disclose WhatsApp or Viber communications, by not allowing cross‑examination of the victim's physical examination and by not giving a corroboration warning. Mr Justice John Edwards rejected all these grounds, stating that the trial judge had acted within his discretion and that the evidence presented was sufficient for the jury. The appeal was therefore dismissed, leaving the conviction and 14‑year sentence intact.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Father who repeatedly raped daughter (9) to remain behind bars. Procedural stage: appeal
When:
- November 2022 Incident
- December 2019 Incident
- April 2020 Incident
- 2024-10-10 Publication
Case subjects
Convicted Person
Outcome: A father who was jailed for 14 years for the repeated rape of his nine-year-old daughter has failed in an appeal against his conviction, with the Court of Appeal ruling there was no basis to the man's claim of possible collusion between the complainant and other witnesses. "Whether the complainant's evidence was consistent or inconsistent with what she said to those to whom she had complained was uniquely a jury issue," said Mr Justice John Edwards at the Court of Appeal today, rejecting the appeal by the 59-year-old man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of his daughter. The man was jailed for 14 years.
Places mentioned
- Court of Appeal
- Central Criminal Court
Topics
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