Prosecution rests in case of man accused of raping young daughter

The prosecution case has closed in the Central Criminal Court trial of a father accused of raping his young daughter.

The 43-year-old man, who can not be identified for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty to the rape and sexual assault of his then eight-year-old daughter on a date in September 2007.

The older brother of the complainant told Ms Isobel Kennedy SC, prosecuting, that he is now 15 years old.

The boy told Mr Blaise O’Carroll SC, defending, during cross examination, that he recalled living in a number of homes with his family prior to their final home where he said they lived for about one year.

He said his mother minded the family and his father was a handyman. He agreed his father was a good worker and sometimes went to work before the children were awake. He said his sisters shared a bedroom with other siblings and he had a room to himself.

He denied he had any sexual contact with his mother or father.

A garda from the local station told Ms Kennedy that while a colleague was with the accused man at the station in September 2007 she became aware that the man’s partner and children were outside. She said she invited them inside the station and offered the children something to eat.

A consultant pediatrician, told Ms Kennedy that she examined the complainant's genitalia in July 2008. She said she made a finding that the posterior rim of the hymen was narrowed.

She agreed that this finding could be seen in girls who had a history of vaginal penetration but also in those presenting as normal.

She agreed with Mr Kieran Kelly BL, defending, that she did not find tears, scars or bruising on the complainant but she said she would not expect to find those if the child had been in a safe place for some time before the exam.

She told Mr Kelly that the narrowing of the posterior rim of the hymen was an “indeterminate finding”. She agreed this finding could also be seen in girls presenting without allegations of abuse.

She agreed with Ms Kennedy, during re-examination, that findings are not made in many cases of children who have been sexually abused particularly if not examined in the immediate aftermath. She agreed there would be quite rapid healing of tissue in the genital area.

The trial continues before Mr Justice Paul Carney and a jury of seven men and five women.