Decision reserved in appeal over suspended sentence for sexual assault

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The Court of Appeal reserved judgment on the Director of Public Prosecutions’ appeal against a two-year suspended sentence imposed on a man who sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl. The proceedings were reported on 9 December 2021.

The man, who was 22 at the time of the report and cannot be identified for legal reasons, had pleaded guilty at Midleton District Court in December 2020 to sexually assaulting the girl, contrary to section 2 of the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amended) Act 1990. At the same hearing, he admitted asking her to touch him, contrary to section 4 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017, and contacting a child for sexual exploitation, contrary to section 7 of that Act.

The assault took place on 4 December 2018 in a secluded seaside spot after the girl agreed to meet the then 19-year-old, who had befriended her on Snapchat. He later fled the country and lived in England before returning to Ireland in July 2020. Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin imposed the suspended sentence at Cork Circuit Criminal Court in February 2021.

The DPP argued that the sentence was unduly lenient and that the judge had failed to give sufficient weight to the man’s knowledge that the girl was underage. The DPP also cited his attempt to evade prosecution as an aggravating factor. Donal T McCarthy BL, for the DPP, said an entirely suspended sentence was not in accordance with principle.

Elizabeth O’Connell SC, for the man, said the DPP had to show a substantial departure from the norm. She said the offence had severely affected his life, he had spent a month in custody after his return from England and he was now in full-time employment. She also cited his early guilty plea, lack of previous convictions and the fact that he had not since come to the attention of gardaí.

This case may have concluded differently. The outcome has not yet been confirmed by a public source we could find.