Meath man’s rape and sexual assault conviction upheld

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

A Meath man’s conviction for rape and 12 sexual assaults was upheld on appeal on 12 April 2018. The proceedings were reported on 13 April 2018.

A jury found the man guilty of one count of rape and 12 counts of sexual assault involving his fiancée’s three daughters. The offences took place at their family home in the east of the country in 2009 and 2010, when the girls were in their early to mid teens.

Mr Justice Paul Coffey sentenced the man to 10 years’ imprisonment. The judge said the man had no previous convictions, but there was nothing else that could be said in mitigation.

The appeal argued that the trial judge should have warned the jury about the dangers of convicting without corroboration in relation to all three complainants. The judge had given a partial warning concerning one complainant. The man’s barrister, Bernard Condon SC, submitted that there was a risk the jury felt they did not need to be as careful in respect of the other two.

Rejecting the appeal, Mr Justice John Hedigan said the trial judge’s approach was completely logical in light of the evidence. He said the judge had warned the jury to take care in its decision and had emphasised the presumption of innocence. Mr Justice Hedigan sat with Mr Justice George Birmingham and Mr Justice Alan Mahon.