Three years for man who raped sleeping woman

AN “upstanding member” of a community in Kerry has been sentenced to three years in prison for raping a woman while she slept, having met her for the first time that night.

Daniel (DJ) Keane, aged 24, of Beach Grove, Listowel was convicted by a Central Criminal Court jury last month of raping the woman at her home on February 9, 2009. He had pleaded not guilty and initially denied having sex with the woman but when his semen was found in her vagina, he claimed he had a wet dream after falling asleep beside her.

Keane, a member of Moyvane GAA football club and Newtown Athletic Club, was described by his counsel Hugh Hartnett as “an upstanding member of the community”. He had five previous convictions for road traffic offences which all arose from one incident.

Mr Justice Sheehan suspended the final year of the sentence.

Garda Orla Coakley told the court that the woman, her friend and Keane had “a considerable amount to drink that night”. The women had been out socialising separately to Keane but they met in a takeaway later that night.

Garda Coakley said “in circumstances not clear to anybody” all three got a taxi back to the victim’s home where she and her friend went to bed and Keane was provided with a duvet so he could sleep on the couch.

Garda Coakley said Keane later came into the room where the women were sleeping and lay “half on, half off” the bed. The victim woke and noticed Keane there but “did not regard him as a threat”. Her friend was sleeping heavily and she fell back asleep herself.

Garda Coakely said the woman woke up later to find Keane having sex with her. She told him to stop, slid under him and he ejaculated on her leg. She told him to leave and called him “a sicko”.

He left and she and her friend went to the local garda station to report Keane.