Man who raped and sexually abused his young daughter gets 10-and-a-half years

The judge said Michael Carter took advantage of his position and abused his daughter when he should have protected her

Michael Carter, who was found guilty last month of one count of rape and 25 counts of sexual assault when his daughter was aged between nine and 12 years old. He does not accept the verdict of the jury and maintains his innocence. Picture: Collins Courts

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A Donegal man who raped and sexually abused his young daughter a decade ago has been jailed for 10-and-a-half years.

Michael Carter (55) was found guilty last month following a trial at the Central Criminal Court of one count of rape and 25 sample counts of sexual assault between June 2010 and June 2014, when his daughter, Karen Harkin, was aged between nine and 12 years old.

The court was previously told that Carter of Kinnego, Ballymagan, Buncrana, Co. Donegal, does not accept the verdict of the jury and maintains his innocence. Ms Harkin, now 22, waived her anonymity so her father can be named.

Ms Harkin's parents were separated, and the court has heard the abuse occurred when she visited her father's rented home between 2010 and 2014.

Imposing sentence on Tuesday, Ms Justice Karen O'Connor said Carter took advantage of his position and abused his daughter when he should have protected her. She said there had been a “massive breach of trust” between a father and his young daughter.

Ms Justice O'Connor said it is an aggravating feature that the abuse took place in Carter's home, a place where the victim “should have been safe”. The judge said she agreed with the Direction of Public Prosecutions' assessment that the rape charge falls into the more serious category for sentencing due to the aggravating features.

She noted other aggravating features include the age difference between the defendant and the victim, the considerable period of time involved and that some of the sexual assaults were of “serious gravity”.

Karen Harkin, now 22, waived her anonymity so her father can be named. Picture: Colllins Courts

The judge also noted there was a “pre-mediated element” to some of the offending and that Carter watched pornography in the presence of the victim. She said some of the abuse took place in a bath, “a place any child should feel nurtured and safe”.

Ms Justice O'Connor set a headline sentence of 12 years in respect of the rape count, noting that it took place in an environment where the victim was “sexually abused on a regular basis in the living room, bathroom and bedroom” of Carter's home.

She imposed a sentence of 11 years in respect of the rape count, with the final six months suspended for 12 months on strict conditions, including one year's post-release supervision by the Probation Services.

She also handed Carter a sentence of eight years in relation to the sexual assault counts, with all sentences to run concurrently. The judge backdated the sentence to June 28, when Carter entered custody.

Ms Justice O'Connor noted that Carter did not plead guilty and that form of mitigation is not available in this case. Carter has also not expressed any remorse and does not accept the jury's verdict.

She noted that prison can be more difficult for someone entering custody for the first time at 55. She also noted that Carter will be a registered sex offender.

During the earlier sentence hearing, the court heard that Carter would watch pornography while the victim was present and he would touch her private parts. He would also put his hand down her underwear and touch her private parts.

The court also heard that Carter would remove the victim's trousers and underwear and rub himself on top of her. She would struggle to breathe during these incidents.

Carter also touched the victim inappropriately while she was in the bath and would occasionally get into the bath with her, where he would rub his genitals against her and touch her inappropriately.

On one occasion, Carter raped the victim but stopped when she screamed. She then ran into the bathroom and noticed she was bleeding. When interviewed by gardaí, Carter denied any wrongdoing.

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