The Court of Appeal allowed a Director of Public Prosecutions appeal against the leniency of two sentences imposed on Joseph Carberry for assaults on two women in Dublin in 2010. It set aside the original sentences and imposed concurrent three-year prison terms, but suspended both in full subject to conditions.
The offences, to which Carberry pleaded guilty, were committed within minutes of each other on 5 September 2010. The court heard that he approached Karen Manley near a convenience store on O’Connell Street, threatened her and stabbed her. She collapsed and was taken to hospital. A prosecuting garda said she lost a significant amount of blood and had a small puncture wound near her groin. Medical records were unavailable to the court, which described the injuries as potentially serious.
A few minutes later, Carberry approached Imelda O’Brien. After shouting, he produced what appeared to be a steak knife. O’Brien suffered injuries to her abdomen and left hand and required hospital treatment. She died before the sentencing hearing, but the judgment said there was no suggestion that the injuries were linked to her death.
The Circuit Court had imposed two-year prison sentences, to run concurrently and suspended in full. The Court of Appeal said those terms did not reflect the offences’ gravity, describing them as random and essentially unprovoked attacks on defenceless victims. It found the sentences unduly lenient under section 2 of the Criminal Justice Act 1993 and invited submissions before resentencing Carberry.
The appeal court assessed the offences as falling in the upper end of the mid-range for section 3 offences under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997. It set a three-year term for each before mitigation. The court then considered Carberry’s circumstances as they stood at the time of resentencing. It cited his progress since the offences, including being consistently free from drugs and alcohol since bail was granted in November 2013, and the Gardaí’s acknowledgment that he had not come to adverse attention.
The court suspended the three-year sentences in full, concurrently, with effect from 12 May 2014. For three years from that date, Carberry was required to keep the peace and be of good behaviour, remain free from drugs and alcohol, and submit to Probation and Welfare Service supervision. He must follow directions on drug and alcohol treatment and counselling, provide requested samples and urinalysis, attend required meetings, and keep the service informed of his address and contact details. He was also required to enter a €100 bond, with no lodgement required.