Man’s 11-year sentence for rape and sexual assault upheld

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The Court of Appeal dismissed a man’s appeal against his 11-year sentence for the rape and sexual assault of his younger sister on 20 October 2022.

The man, who cannot be named to protect his sister’s identity, was convicted at the Central Criminal Court on 12 January 2016 after a five-day trial. He had been charged with 48 counts of rape and sexual assault.

The offences occurred between January 1999 and December 2005, when he was aged between 16 and 22 and his sister between ten and 16. The offending included sexually assaulting her with a screwdriver.

The 11-year sentence was reduced from a headline sentence of 14 years. His appeal argued that the penalty was excessive, that the sentencing judge had erred in assessing the gravity of the offences and that she had erred in not suspending part of the sentence.

Delivering judgment, Mr Justice John Edwards said the court found no error in the sentencing judge’s approach. He said the man’s culpability was significant and the harm immense. He also noted there had been no meaningful expression of remorse.

Mr Justice Edwards said the man had not pleaded guilty.