Man found guilty of sexually assaulting 10-year-old goddaughter has conviction overturned

Appeal court rules trial judge erred by making no reference to cross-examination of complainant

The man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was sentenced to seven years in prison with the final three years suspended after being found guilty of the offence by a majority verdict following a Circuit Criminal Court trial in January 2019.

A man found guilty of sexually assaulting his 10-year-old goddaughter at his home in 2016 has had his conviction overturned on appeal.

The man's barrister, Colman Cody SC, had argued before the Court of Appeal that the trial judge had presented "an imbalanced view of the evidence" in his charge as he failed to make any reference to the cross-examination of the complainant, when reading transcripts of interviews with her to the jury.