The Court of Appeal has dismissed Stephen Mahon’s appeal against the severity of a three-year sentence for robbery, including a final six months suspended.
In a judgment delivered ex tempore on 4 April 2022, the court said the sentence was within the margin of appreciation afforded to the sentencing judge. The appeal challenged the sentence imposed by Cork Circuit Criminal Court on 28 September 2021, after Mahon affirmed a signed guilty plea on 7 September.
The robbery took place at about 3.45am on 20 May 2021 in a suburb of Cork City. The injured party, then aged 40, was cycling to her job as a cleaner when Mahon followed her, pushed her from her bicycle and aimed a punch that did not connect. He took the bicycle, valued at €749, and cycled home. CCTV captured the incident.
Mahon presented himself at a Garda station on 23 May. He said he could not recall the incident but admitted it, telling gardaí he had taken prescription drugs and alcohol. He apologised to the injured party.
The appeal raised six grounds, including that the sentencing judge had given insufficient weight to mitigation, Mahon’s early plea, remorse, personal circumstances, time in custody and intoxication. His lawyers also argued that rehabilitation prospects had not been given enough weight. The prosecution submitted that the sentence was proportionate, pointing to the offence circumstances, his previous convictions and the fact that he committed the robbery while subject to a bond to keep the peace and be of good behaviour.
The Court of Appeal noted that Mahon had 62 previous convictions, including three for theft and two for assault under section 2. It also noted that the robbery occurred about two months after he entered the bond in connection with an earlier conviction. The court said that, although the sentencing judge had not identified a headline sentence, his indication that three years was appropriate even with a guilty plea put it at the upper end of the low range for offences of this kind.
The court acknowledged the mitigation, including the signed plea and cooperation with gardaí, while noting that CCTV footage had identified Mahon. It considered the suspended portion a significant discount for mitigation and rejected the rehabilitation argument in light of the offence having been committed during a suspended sentence. The appeal was dismissed; the three-year sentence, with the final six months suspended, remained in place.