Lenient sentences deter sex attack reporting

Lenient sentences are putting victims off reporting sex crimes and are sending out the wrong messages, the Rape Crisis Network has warned.

As public anger grows after another sex attacker walked free from court after he was ordered to pay €15,000 for assaulting a teenager, campaign groups have said sentences must fit the crime.

Graham Griffiths, aged 29, from Co Louth, walked free from Dublin Circuit Criminal on Wednesday after admitting to sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl. He pushed her against railings and dragged her to the ground.

Reacting to the decision by Judge Martin Nolan to suspend a jail term on condition that the attacker paid his victim €15,000, Cliona Saidlear of the RCN said “a fair and reasonable sentence is essential in order for the State to vindicate survivors of sexual violence”.

“Inconsistent sentencing or a sentence that appears lenient can have a very real and damaging impact. Our fear is that, in such circumstances, victims of sexual violence may be slow in coming forward and reporting what has happened.

“The upshot is that if this man pays the €15,000 he will get out of going to jail. Survivors of sexual violence will wonder about the fairness of that and our fear is that such sentences will put people off from reporting assaults. It definitely sends out the wrong message.”

She said her group was concerned that Griffiths, who had four convictions for common assault, was not subject to a compulsory treatment programme as a condition of avoiding jail.

It is not the first time Judge Nolan has hit the headlines for his sentences. The judge, who jailed a businessman for six years for a garlic import scam, let a sex attacker walk free from court earlier this month.

Aidan Farrington, aged 45 of Iona Drive, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, was freed even though he pleaded guilty to abusing his two adult nieces on three separate occasions.

He imposed a three-year term suspended for three years, saying the publication of the defendant’s name was punishment enough.

The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre was inundated with calls from people infuriated by the judgment in the Griffiths case.

The centre’s CEO, Ellen O’Malley-Dunlop, said suspending the sentence of a person found guilty of a serious sexual assault was a bad message to send out and did not reflect any deep understanding of the extent of the trauma suffered by the victim. “This 17-year-old girl was so traumatised by what happened to her that she could not even come to court to give her victim impact statement. That will give you some idea of the impact of the assault on her. That should be reflected in sentencing.”

She said inconsistent sentencing was not good for the criminal justice system and that she hoped the DPP would appeal the sentence on the grounds of leniency.

* The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre offers a 24-hour helpline on 1800 778 888.

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