The Court of Appeal dismissed a bid by the Director of Public Prosecutions to review as unduly lenient three suspended two-year sentences imposed on Amy McAuley for theft. It nevertheless changed the repayment conditions attached to the sentences, setting staged deadlines for restitution.
The sentences were imposed by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 30 November 2015 after McAuley pleaded guilty to three theft counts. The thefts involved a total of €132,355.20 taken from her employer, Nordzucker Ireland Limited, through payments diverted to a personal bank account. By sentencing, €30,000 had been repaid. The outstanding restitution was approximately €102,355.20.
The DPP argued that the sentencing judge gave insufficient weight to the substantial sum and breach of trust, and that the suspension condition lacked a periodic payment schedule to monitor restitution. The Court of Appeal acknowledged that the sentence was lenient and that its structure was open to criticism.
But the court said the sentence was not so lenient as to fall outside the appropriate range. It considered the sentencing judge’s remarks and the circumstances, including McAuley’s first recorded offence, guilty pleas at the first opportunity, cooperation, partial repayment, offer to make full restitution and significant mental health difficulties. The judgment also noted her admission that she had previously taken €91,113.34 from another employer, Bestseller Ireland Limited; that sum had been repaid in full.
The court dismissed the DPP’s application, finding no manifest error of principle that made the sentences unduly lenient. Acting on its own motion, however, it modified the restitution condition: 30% of the required sum must be paid by the end of five years of the suspended period, a further 30% by the end of seven and a half years, and any remaining balance by the end of the ten-year period.
Any application alleging non-compliance with the restructured conditions must first be made to the Circuit Criminal Court, the Court of Appeal directed. The original two-year sentences, suspended for ten years, were otherwise left in place.