Tipperary man jailed for eight years for sex assault

A Co Tipperary teenager who was violently sexually assaulted has said in her victim impact statement that she has since tried to kill herself “many times and in many ways”.

Her attacker, Noel Holland (aged 37) of Clarkes Flats, Main Street, Templemore, was sentenced to eight years by Mr Justice Paul Carney at the Central Criminal Court today after he pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting the then 18-year-old at his home on February 1, 2009.

He faced a more serious charge but pleaded guilty to sexual assault after the Director of Public Prosecutions accepted it on the basis that the full facts of the case would be given.

Ms Deirdre Murphy SC (with Ms Kathleen Noctor BL), prosecuting, said the DPP felt that the case was the “higher end of the scale”, considering the violence perpetrated by Holland and the duration of the attack.

Mr Justice Carney declared Holland a sex offender and said that it was clear that “the facts proved would have supported a conviction on a more serious offence” and would have opened the court to a higher penalty than the 10 years available for sex assault.

He said having taken into account the “grave nature of the offence, the gratuitous violence used, the terror-inducing conduct of the accused and the effect on the victim” the case merited an eight-year sentence.

Mr Justice Carney suspended the final three years of the sentence after taking into consideration Holland’s plea of guilty, lack of previous convictions and good work history.

He suspended the sentence on condition that Holland keeps away from his victim and ordered that he undergo five years post release supervision.

Garda PJ O’Brien told Ms Murphy that the woman said in her victim impact statement that she has had nightmares since the attack and has trouble sleeping. When she does manage to fall asleep she wakes up thinking Holland is in her room.

She is depressed and angry and has started to take any tablet “I can get” and drinks alcohol to “help me forget”. She said she felt like her life was “spiralling out of control” and has tried to kill herself by overdosing and by hanging herself.

Gda O’Brien said Holland invited the girl back to his home on the pretence of allowing her to call a taxi after they had both been at another woman’s home that night.

He later sexually assaulted her while he held her nose and mouth and tried to choke her.

The teenager was crying and begging him to stop but Holland took off her boots and leggings and demanded that she open her legs.

When she refused he forced her to perform oral sex on him.

He allowed her to go to the toilet and the victim managed to grab her mobile phone en-route.

She texted her father: “I am being raped” but when he returned her call, Holland got the phone off her and forced her to perform oral sex on him again.

Her mother then called her and she shouted into the phone: “Help I am being raped. The man is Holland. I am in Templemore.”

Holland later told the teenager to leave his home after he assisted her in getting dressed.

She went to a nearby hotel and the gardaí were called immediately.

Meanwhile Holland went to the local garda station and said a woman “down the street” was going to say he raped her before he added “I want to get her for libel.”

Gda O’Brien arrived at the hotel where he said the teenager was very upset to the point of hyperventilating. She had a cut to her lower lip and bruising around her throat.

She was brought to the sexual assault unit in the local hospital and Holland was arrested.

Holland had previous convictions for road traffic offences.

Gda O’Brien agreed with Mr Michael Delaney SC, defending, that Holland had a lot of alcohol that night and that he had no previous convictions for sexual assault or assault.

Mr Delaney said that a psychologist report indicated that Holland seemed to fully comprehend the gravity of the offence and had taken responsibility for his actions.

The report also concluded that Holland had a propensity to binge drink but had since curtailed this and he was of low average intelligence.

Mr Delaney said his client wished to apologise to the victim for his behaviour.