Courts / Offaly / Report
Ashling Murderer loses bid to have life sentence backdated
Summary
Jozef Puska has failed in his attempt to have his life sentence for the murder of Ashling Murphy commence from the date of his arrest in January 2022, rather than the date of the trial jury's verdict in November 2023. Puska's legal team argued that the judge did not provide a valid reason for not backdating the sentence. However, the trial judge, Mr Justice Tony Hunt, stated that the backdate was academic and that the parole board would consider the time served in custody, not the date of arrest. The Court of Appeal upheld the judge's decision, noting that the judge had considered the seriousness of the case and the impact on the victim's family. The appeal was dismissed, and Puska remains in custody.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Ashling Murderer loses bid to have life sentence backdated. Procedural stage: appeal
When:
- January 2022 Incident
- November 2023 Incident
- January 12, 2022 Hearing Or Sentence
- 2026-07-16 Publication
Why: Mr Berry said that because this was a mandatory life sentence, there was no possibility to afford mitigation, so he asked whether it was appropriate for the sentencing judge to increase the amount of time Puska will serve, as no regard was given to the 22 months Puska had already been in custody. CNI source report
Case subjects
Accused
Outcome: He said that when the question may be asked as to how long Puska has been in custody, the answer could be when he was sentenced or when he was arrested.; Counsel pointed out that there are cases where accused people enjoy bail before murder trials, who would find themselves in a markedly different situation than those remanded in custody before their trial.
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