OAP jailed for abusing niece 30 years ago

An octogenarian Dubliner who sexually abused his niece more than 30 years ago has been jailed for nine months by Mr Justice Paul Carney at the Central Criminal Court.

James (Bud) Kennedy, aged 86, of Cherryfield Road, Walkinstown pleaded guilty to two counts of indecently assaulting the victim on dates unknown between January 1, 1972 and December 31, 1975.

Mr Justice Carney who was told the victim wanted him named in media reports said he didn't expect her to be happy with what he was about to do. "I can only have regard to the two offences to which he has pleaded guilt. They are not sample offences."

He imposed concurrent sentences of nine and six months and remanded Kennedy on bail to March 31 to allow him make domestic arrangements before presenting himself in the court to begin his prison sentence.

The victim described Kennedy in her impact statement as a "selfish and arrogant man" who had never shown remorse and though he had finally pleaded guilty "he is doing me no favours".

She said he had destroyed her childhood but she now had closure after years "of anxiety, fear, anger and stress" during which he used "every possible trick" to stop the prosecution.

Detective Garda John Doggett (retired) told prosecuting counsel, Mr Paul Coffey SC (with Ms Martina Baxter BL), the victim was nine or ten years old when the offences happened.

He said Kennedy exposed himself to her on the first occasion and on the second occasion he fondled her vaginal area. He was aged about 50 at the time.

Det. Gda Doggett said that when arrested in 1999 after the matters came to light, Kennedy at first vehemently denied the allegations and judicial review proceedings went all the way to the Supreme Court which rejected the application to stop the prosecution.

After Kennedy was acquitted in another case on a sexual assault charge in relation to another relative, he offered his pleas in this case which were accepted by the State.

Det. Gda Doggett said Kennedy was a former Guinness driver and had no previous convictions.

Mr Coffey told Mr Justice Carney that the Director of Public Prosecutions placed the case on the middle to lower end of the sentencing scale.

Mr Jim Kennedy Junior told defence counsel, Mr Patrick Gageby SC, that his father accepted his guilt and apologised to the victim and her family for his actions.

He said Kennedy had a heart attack in 1996 and suffered from severe health difficulties including urinary incontinence. His house had been modified to allow him move around it.

Mr Gageby submitted that medical and nursing reports before the court concerning Kennedy's "many ailments" which he said showed he was suffering from continuous deterioration.

Mr Gageby said he disagreed with the DPP's estimate that the case was at the lower-middle point on the scale for sentence.

He submitted that if the offences had been prosecuted closer to the dates on which they happened, they might have been dealt with summarily rather than on indictment.

Mr Gageby said his client would be 87 years old on June 14 and there was "nothing in the evidence to suggest pedophiliac recidivism.