The Court of Appeal has dismissed B.D’s appeal against convictions for 16 counts of rape and 17 counts of sexual assault involving his step-daughter, identified in the judgment as K.A.W, formerly K.D.
The judgment, delivered on 12 April 2019, rejected all five grounds of appeal. The court upheld the trial judge’s decision to remove parts of B.D’s Garda interview records that referred to allegations involving third parties. It said the material was not relevant to a fact in issue and concerned intimate matters that the people mentioned had no opportunity to address. The court also said that, even if the material should have been included, its absence did not affect the overall fairness of the trial.
The appeal court found that the defence’s questioning and its stated case about a falling out connected with the complainant’s boyfriend raised a suggestion of recent fabrication. The court therefore held that the trial judge could admit evidence from the complainant’s friend, A.W, to address that suggestion.
A.W told the trial that the complainant had spoken to her about interactions with her stepfather during secondary school, before beginning her relationship with her boyfriend in July 2011. The court said the disclosures included factual details that corresponded with the complainant’s evidence. It also upheld the trial judge’s decision to allow A.W’s evidence as evidence of recent complaint, noting that the disclosures occurred while the alleged abuse was ongoing and finding no indication that the friend had fed information to the complainant.
The court also rejected a challenge to the judge’s direction to the jury about A.W’s evidence. It said the judge made clear that the evidence could be considered for consistency and credibility, but was not proof that the alleged crimes had occurred.
B.D had been convicted in the Central Criminal Court on 26 January 2017. The judgment records that he received 12-year terms for each rape offence, with lesser terms for the sexual assaults, all to run concurrently; the final two years of the 12-year terms were suspended on conditions. The appeal court dismissed the appeal and did not alter those convictions or sentences.