Courts / Donegal / Report

Child rapist's five trials were not an abuse of process, appeal court finds

Summary

The Court of Appeal has rejected an appeal against conviction by a Donegal man sentenced to ten years imprisonment for the repeated rape of a teenager. Liam Carr, aged 62, with an address in Ballina, Falcarragh, County Donegal, was convicted following trial at the Central Criminal Court in Sligo in 2021 of 31 counts including sexual assault, anal rape and oral rape of the boy between September 1995 and September 2000. The trial was the fifth proceeding on the same charges, after juries in three earlier trials were discharged for legal reasons and a fourth jury could not reach agreement. Carr argued the multiple trials breached his right to a fair trial and raised concerns about witness evidence and jury directions. Justice Isobel Kennedy rejected these grounds, finding no abuse of process and noting the trial judge had properly directed the jury on the standard of proof and presumption of innocence. The conviction appeal has been dismissed.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Child rapist's five trials were not an abuse of process, appeal court finds. Procedural stage: appeal. Findings: Convicted

When:

• September 1995 Incident
• September 2000 Incident
• October 2015 Incident
• 2024-12-19 Publication

Why: "We could not get on with our lives because of the length of the court process," he said. CNI source report

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal Violent Crime

Related court reports

• Child rapist gets 10 years after victim's 'torture' in quest for justice
• Four trials and 'six years of torture' before child rapist convicted, court hears

Read the original CNI report