Kerry teenager's 'life has turned to shit' since she was sexually assaulted by two boys

The two teenage boys, who claimed it was consensual, were convicted by a jury after a 12-day trial in Tralee in January

The teenage boys will be sentenced at 2pm on March 23 at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Dublin.

A Kerry teenager has taken over 1,000 tablets, had 156 hours of counselling and been hospitalised for 112 days since she was sexually abused by two teenagers in 2021.

“My decision to report the crimes committed against me came about because of a good friend intervening on a night I contemplated taking my own life,” she said in a victim impact statement read at the Central Criminal Court on Friday afternoon.

The two teenagers, who claimed it was consensual, were convicted by a jury after a 12-day trial in Tralee in January. One was found guilty of rape and three counts of sexual assault. His co-accused was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault.

After hearing Friday’s evidence, Mr Justice Michael McGrath said he would sentence them at 2pm on March 23 at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Dublin.

The victim and her friend met three other teenagers late at night and went up a laneway near their homes in a remote, rural area. The two defendants and the injured party walked further up another lane beyond the original location.

Prosecution senior counsel Conor Devally led Detective Garda Raleen Bell of the Garda Protective Services Unit through evidence of what occurred. During a 12-day trial, the two defendants said what occurred sexually was entirely consensual and the complainant knew when she was walking with the two of them to the second location that it was for sexual activity. She totally rejected this.

Mr Devally said the 15-year-old boy pulled down her trousers and “they appeared to take it in turns” to sexually assault her up to and including oral rape. One of them carried out a further sexual assault when they all returned to join the other boy and girl, who were back at the first spot.

Mr Devally said both defendants conceded there was sexual activity between the two and the injured party but denied it was anything but consensual.

The injured party’s life was described as being “seriously derailed” since the event at the centre of the case and had not completed her secondary schooling.

Victim impact statement

Det Garda Bell read the impact statement on behalf of the victim: “Since this happened to me I suffered depression and an eating disorder and I have been suicidal. The eating disorder was a way of killing myself slowly. 

"I wanted to hurt myself slowly because I wanted to take the anger out on my body because I couldn’t change what happened. I wanted to change my body so they would never look at me the same way again.

“I have had to take over 1,000 tablets over the last two years. I have had 156 hours of counselling. I was hospitalised for 112 days.

I gave up school, never did my Leaving Cert. I have no qualifications. I gave up all my sports and dropped most of my friends. This is because I couldn’t deal with the way everyone was talking about it after it happened.

“Basically, my life has turned to shit since this happened. It has changed everything for me.” 

She felt during the trial like she was being persuaded by the defence that happened was normal.

“I feel so angry that I am still suffering in these ways over the events on that night, a night that should never have happened,” she said.

Mark Nicholas, senior counsel for one of the defendants, said: “Intoxication was there with everyone. No one inflicted intoxication on anyone else.” 

He said the probation report showed a defiance on the part of the teenager, who he described as immature and unwilling to engage with counselling or support services offered to him. He said the matter was made more complex by an “on-again off-again relationship” between him and the injured party.

Séamus Clarke, defence senior counsel for the co-accused, said: “He is still a juvenile. Addressing the idea of pre-meditation, the idea of a threesome did not come from his quarter, it came from a different quarter. And if she said, yes, it was joking.

“[From the jury’s verdicts] the jury took a view she was incapable of consenting because of her intoxication. He said what happened was on the spur of the moment and not in any way premeditated. 

"What happened occurred when both of them [this defendant and the victim] were children. He realised he caused harm and has shame and regret. He has victim awareness already. There are good insights in his mind about what happened,” Mr Clarke said.

Referring to sentencing of cases in the ‘gang rape’ category, he suggested  this case was not in this category.

The defendant represented by Mr Nicholas knew the victim prior to the attack and was found guilty of rape and three counts of sexual assault. His co-accused was found guilty of two counts of sexual assault