The Court of Appeal has quashed the sentences imposed on Philip Moran for offences arising from two incidents at his former partner’s home in July and August 2022, finding that the original sentencing judge failed to mark the aggravating effect of the later offences.
The court re-sentenced Moran after a Director of Public Prosecutions application under section 2 of the Criminal Justice Act 1993, which allows review of a sentence alleged to be unduly lenient. It held that the sentencing judge’s headline sentences and allowance for mitigation were within his discretion. The error was that the second set of offences was not marked as more serious because it followed the first, whether through a higher headline sentence or consecutive terms.
The July incident involved Moran entering his former partner’s home through an upstairs window. Her uncle was punched after Moran used a concrete block in a threatening manner. In August, Moran returned during the night and again in the morning, breaking a window and glass panel to enter. The judgment says he pushed his pregnant former partner and threatened to kill her and her mother. While detained, he asked his sister to get his former partner to withdraw her complaint.
Moran pleaded guilty after a jury had been sworn in relation to the August bill. The remaining counts on both bills were taken into consideration. The Court of Appeal noted his relevant previous convictions for assault and criminal damage, and adopted the sentencing judge’s mitigating factors. It also considered further information about his engagement with his GP on mental health, his reconciliation with his former partner, and a letter from her.
For the July bill, the court imposed two years and six months’ imprisonment for producing an article capable of inflicting serious injury, identified as a concrete block. The burglary and assault counts were taken into consideration.
For the August bill, it imposed 18 months for criminal damage and 18 months for attempted intimidation, with those terms concurrent with each other. The court said all other counts on that bill were taken into consideration and had regard to section 40 of the Domestic Violence Act 2018. The August terms are consecutive to the July sentence.
The final 12 months of the August sentences were suspended on the same terms and conditions as in the Circuit Court. The court also ordered credit for time spent in custody solely on these matters. Its order replaced the original sentences; it did not determine the guilt of counts taken into consideration.