Courts / Donegal / Report
54-year-old man from small community jailed for abusing 14-year-old girl he knew all her life
Summary
A 54-year-old man from Convoy, County Donegal, has been sentenced to five years imprisonment by the Central Criminal Court following his conviction on six counts of sexual assault. Fergus Carson, of The Green, Main Street, was found guilty by jury of assaulting a 14-year-old girl he had known throughout her life at a relative's house between May and September 2012. Mr Justice Tony Hunt noted that Carson had abused his access to the premises and exploited his knowledge of when the girl's family would be absent. The judge imposed the five-year sentence with the final fifteen months suspended for two years, and ordered twelve months post-release supervision. Carson, who has no previous convictions, does not accept the verdict. The defence submitted concerns regarding victim impact evidence, which the judge addressed in his remarks before sentencing, acknowledging the serious effects of the offending on the young complainant during a critical developmental period.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: 54-year-old man from small community jailed for abusing 14-year-old girl he knew all her life. Procedural stage: sentence. Findings: Convicted
When:
- September 2012 Incident
- 2016-03-11 Publication
Case subjects
Convicted Person
Finding: Convicted
Outcome: Convicted; He noted this was the first time Carson had come into conflict with the law and that he would now be obliged to serve a custodial sentence at a relatively advanced point in his life. Judge Hunt imposed a five year sentence but suspended the final 15 months for two years.
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