Donna Hutch's syringe sentence upheld by appeal court

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

Donna Hutch's 12-month sentence for possessing a syringe was upheld by the Court of Appeal on 31 May 2016, after the DPP challenged it as unduly lenient. She had pleaded guilty in Dublin Circuit Court on 15 May 2015, and was sentenced on 18 June 2015.

The court dismissed the application, finding that the sentencing judge had recognised the unusual circumstances and had not made an error in principle. An assault count was taken into consideration when Hutch was sentenced.