'Exorcism' father loses second appeal over conviction for cruelty to daughter

The trial heard that the girl was punched, beaten with a belt and a stick, choked, bitten and badly burned all over her body

The Court of Appeal upheld the conviction while reducing the 14-year sentence he received to 13 years. File photo: Laura Hutton/RollingNews.ie

A father who took part with his wife in "exorcism" beatings and cruelty to his nine-year-old daughter, who was later left with a catastrophic brain injury, has failed in a second appeal against his conviction and imprisonment.

The Supreme Court ruled that a jury verdict in 2021, finding the father guilty of two counts of assault causing serious harm and three counts of child cruelty, should be upheld. The father, and the mother who was also convicted of the same counts, were both jailed for 14 years.