The Court of Appeal has dismissed Ryan Glennon’s appeal against the severity of a six-year prison sentence imposed for membership of an unlawful organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army.
In an ex tempore judgment delivered on 19 October 2018, the court found no error of principle in the Special Criminal Court’s sentencing decision. The appeal concerned sentence only: the Court of Appeal had dismissed Glennon’s appeal against conviction on 28 June 2018.
Glennon was convicted after a trial and sentenced on 5 December 2016 to six years’ imprisonment, backdated to his conviction on 11 November 2016. The sentencing court set a headline sentence of six and a half years and applied a six-month reduction, identifying the absence of previous convictions, apart from minor road traffic matters, as mitigation.
At the sentence appeal, Glennon’s counsel argued that the reduction did not adequately reflect his lack of relevant convictions or his sustained employment. The prosecution said the sentencing court had taken account of his work history but was entitled to give limited weight to an employer’s letter that did not say the employer knew of the conviction.
The Court of Appeal said ordinary sentencing principles applied, requiring an individual sentence proportionate to the offence and the offender. It said the weight given to mitigation depends on the circumstances and the balance between sentencing aims, including rehabilitation, retribution and deterrence.
The court considered that Glennon’s offending was at the high end of the sentencing range. It described him as an active-service member whose activity had the potential to endanger many lives. Since the case had been contested and there was no evidence of willingness to cease, desist and dissociate, the court said only modest weight could be given to his work record and lack of previous convictions. It was satisfied both factors had been considered and were adequately reflected in the reduction.
The court dismissed the sentence appeal. The six-year sentence remained in place; the judgment did not alter the conviction or sentence.