Galway man loses appeal against conviction for raping goddaughter

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

A man from Galway has lost his appeal against convictions for raping and indecently assaulting his cousin, who was also his goddaughter. His name is withheld to protect her anonymity.

He pleaded not guilty to two counts of indecent assault and two counts of rape. A jury found him guilty of the offences, which took place on unknown dates between 1982 and 1984, when the girl was aged between seven and nine.

In June 2020, Ms Justice Carmel Stewart sentenced him at the Central Criminal Court to 10 years, suspending the final year on a number of conditions. The effective prison term was nine years.

The man maintained that the jury’s verdict was unsafe and his trial unfair. His appeal also raised alleged inconsistencies in the complainant’s account and challenged the judge’s handling of the delay before the complaint to gardaí.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the challenge. Delivering judgment, Mr Justice George Birmingham said the court was not persuaded by any of the grounds and described the trial judge’s charge to the jury as “impeccable”. He sat with Mr Justice John Edwards and Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy. The appeal proceedings were reported on 21 March 2022.