The Court of Appeal has quashed a fully suspended four-year sentence imposed for the sexual assault of a child and resentenced the offender to two years’ imprisonment, with the final six months suspended.
In a judgment delivered on 27 March 2023, the court found that the original sentence was unduly lenient because it fell substantially below the norm. It said the seriousness and aggravated circumstances of the offence required a custodial sentence, despite substantial mitigating factors.
The respondent, identified in the judgment as B.O’S, had pleaded guilty to one count of sexual assault. The Circuit Criminal Court for the Eastern Circuit and County of Louth sentenced him in February 2022 to four years in prison, suspended in full for four years subject to probation conditions. A separate charge of causing a child to watch sexual activity was abandoned by the prosecution on the sentencing date.
The Court of Appeal accepted the four-year headline sentence as within the sentencing judge’s discretion, though likely at its lower end. It noted the complainant’s young age, the respondent’s position of trust, that the child was asleep when the assault began, the offer of money to secure her silence, and the lasting harm described in a victim impact statement. The court said those circumstances made actual deprivation of liberty necessary for punishment and deterrence.
The court also recognised the respondent’s guilty plea, lack of previous convictions, remorse, positive contributions to society, addiction issues and low assessed risk of reoffending if he addressed his substance use. These factors justified a substantial reduction from the headline sentence. The court further took account of delay in bringing the review and the respondent’s continued counselling and psychotherapy.
The resentencing imposed two years’ imprisonment, with the final six months suspended on the same conditions set by the Circuit Criminal Court: keeping the peace and being of good behaviour, engaging with Probation Services and following their instructions, and engaging with addiction services. The sentence was ordered to run from 10 April 2023. The respondent was directed to present himself at a Garda station at noon that day and surrender to custody.