'I am a fighter,' says girl as man is jailed for raping her when she was 16
Justice MacGrath imposed a six-and-a-half-year sentence and suspended the final 15 months on conditions.
A man who carried a child that had been sleeping in her tent to another tent where he raped her has been given a six-and-a-half-year sentence.
The man (27), who cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim, raped the then-16-year-old girl at a party in an isolated rural area. She was woken by being carried out of her tent by the man, who also orally raped her during the incident.
The Central Criminal Court heard that after being raped, the girl returned to the party where she was shouted at by adult women who effectively blamed her for what happened. The court heard that when she was later examined in hospital, she was found to have extensive injuries to her body and genitalia.
The man had pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and oral rape at a location in Co. Leitrim on a date between July 11, 2020, and July 12, 2020. He was convicted of both charges by the unanimous verdict of a jury following a trial in February 2022. He has no previous convictions.
Passing sentence on Friday, Mr Justice Michael MacGrath said it was clear the injured party had suffered great harm as a result of the accused man’s actions and said that the man’s level of culpability was high. Mr Justice MacGrath set a headline sentence of eight-year imprisonment.
He noted in mitigation factors, including his lack of convictions and previous good character, that he had offered to plead guilty to child defilement and references before the court describing him as a good man, a hard worker and that he was dedicated to family and friends.
He noted the man’s difficult family circumstances and said he was taking into account exceptional circumstances in the form of care needed for a member of the accused man’s family.
Justice MacGrath imposed a six-and-a-half-year sentence and suspended the final 15 months on conditions, including that the man not contact the victim directly or indirectly, or through any third party by any means including social media.
In her victim impact statement, which was read before the court, the now 18-year-old victim said that back in 2020 she was a “boisterous” girl full of love for everyone around her.
The victim said she had grown up knowing the accused man because of their families. She said she had known him when she was a little kid and asked him how he could have done this.
She said she had been “used and exploited” and felt disgusted about her body in the aftermath. She said he had not only hurt her but had hurt her family as well.
The victim said she never deserved this and never deserved this pain. She said she wished she could take things back and not go to the party.
She said he had ruined her future, but she would not give up. She said she was “a fighter and would keep fighting”.
A local detective told Lorcan Staines SC, defending, that on the dates in question, the complainant was in attendance at a 16th birthday party in an isolated rural area in Co. Leitrim.
The detective said that at the party there were two groups, a large group of teenagers and a group of adults, both of which consumed a large amount of alcohol. The accused man was a part of the group of adults.
The complainant and a then-14-year-old boy had consensual sex earlier in the evening at the party. One of the other children took a video of them and this became embarrassing for her as it became common knowledge at the party that they had had sex.
Sometime after 11pm, the complainant told her friend she was not feeling well and she was brought back to her tent where she fell asleep in her clothes. She later remembers being lifted from her tent by the accused and brought to another tent.
The accused man raped the teenager in this tent. The complainant remembers hearing a male voice at one point saying that he would not tell anyone.
After this incident, the girl returned to the party where she was shouted at by adult women who effectively blamed her for what happened and said that the accused had a girlfriend.
As the party was in an isolated location, the girl could not leave until the following morning when her friend's mother picked her up. Her phone had been confiscated by the man who organised the party, who had also confiscated the accused man's phone.
The girl immediately reported the incident to gardaĂ and was brought to the sexual assault treatment unit (SATU) where she was found to have extensive injuries to both her body and her genitalia.
The accused was arrested and in an interview with gardaĂ he indicated he had had sexual intercourse with the girl, but claimed as far as he was concerned it was consensual.
The detective agreed with Seamus Clarke SC, defending, that his client offered to plead guilty to child defilement on the basis the victim was intoxicated and not capable of consenting, but that this was not acceptable to the DPP.
Mr Clarke said his client is a father and is in loco parentis for his partner's children. He submitted that the conviction has been “devastating” for his client's partner and family.
Counsel said his client's partner has been supported by him and she spends a lot of time in hospital with a family member. He said she is in court and is supporting him despite his conviction.
He submitted his client's family are going to suffer from his incarceration and he is not going to be able to provide for his family the way he should be able. He said his client did appear to himself have been heavily intoxicated on the night, but that was not an excuse.
- If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please click here for a list of support services.
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