The Court of Appeal has retained a 12-year sentence for J.P. over the sexual assault of a 14-year-old boy in Killarney, but increased the suspended portion of the term to create a stronger structure for rehabilitation.
J.P. pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting the boy at a bed and breakfast on 12 May 2012. He had arrived in Killarney immediately after completing a six-year prison sentence for another sexual assault.
The court heard that J.P. met the teenager on the street outside a pub. The boy, who was living in residential care and had an autistic spectrum disorder diagnosis, accepted J.P.’s invitation to drink alcohol with him. They later went to J.P.’s accommodation, where J.P. performed oral sex on him.
The Central Criminal Court originally imposed 12 years’ imprisonment with the final two years suspended, together with 18 months of post-release supervision. J.P. was also placed indefinitely on the Sex Offenders Register.
On appeal, his lawyers argued that the offence should not have been placed at the highest end of the sentencing scale. They pointed to the absence of violence or threats and described the incident as a single act involving a victim approached at random.
The Court of Appeal rejected the argument that the 12-year headline sentence was excessive. It placed significant weight on J.P.’s history of sexual offences involving teenage boys and young men, some involving violence or threats, and on the fact that this offence occurred within hours of his release from a lengthy sentence for similar offending.
However, the court found the original sentence did not give enough weight to rehabilitation. It increased the suspended portion from two to three years, leaving nine years to serve, and required J.P. to seek and complete suitable psychological treatment and counselling in prison, including the Better Lives programme or similar programmes.
Post-release supervision was extended to two years.