A Donegal man who sexually assaulted his partner as she slept has been given a suspended sentence.
The woman told the court in her victim impact statement that the offence had shattered her life and trust. She described feeling shock, sadness and anger in the aftermath of the offence.
The 31-year-old man, pleaded guilty to the sexual assault of the woman at their family home in Donegal, on February 11, 2018.
Mr Justice Paul McDermott said the offence was a serious breach of trust and significant harm caused to the woman’s life, as well as her safety and security in her own home and bedroom.
A headline sentence of four years was set before mitigation.
The judge took into account the early guilty plea, that remorse had been expressed and that the offence was not pre-planned.
A sentence of two years and six months was then imposed. However, noting that there were no previous convictions, the Judge was satisfied the features of the case indicated the sentence should be suspended. Three years probation service was ordered and the accused was told to not approach or contact the woman directly.
The accused was deemed at low risk of reoffending.
In a written letter, the man apologised for what he put the woman through.
Full Report:
A Donegal man who sexually assaulted his partner as she slept has been given a suspended sentence.
The woman told the court in her victim impact statement that the offence had shattered her life and trust. She described feeling shock, sadness and anger in the aftermath of the offence.
The 31-year-old man, who can not be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to sexual assault of the woman at their family home in Donegal, on February 11, 2018. He has no previous convictions.
The accused man had been facing a more serious charge but following jury disagreements in two trials the Director of Public Prosecutions accepted a guilty plea to sexual assault.
The accused man had offered a guilty plea to sexual assault since before the first trial.
Mr Justice Paul McDermott said this offence had been a serious breach of trust and significant harm had been done to the woman’s life, as well as her safety and security in her own home and bedroom.
Mr Justice McDermott said the accused man was solely responsible for this damage.
He set a headline sentence of four years before mitigation.
He then took into account factors such as the guilty plea having been offered at the earliest possible opportunity, that the man had expressed remorse and that the offence had not been pre-planned.
Mr Justice McDermott imposed a sentence of two years and six months.
He noted that the accused had not served a prison sentence before and said he was satisfied the features of the case indicated he should suspend the sentence.
He said all sentences needed to be proportionate to the gravity of the case. He said this offence was out of character, that the accused was at a low risk of reoffending and had never committed any other offences. He ordered that the man should not approach or contact the woman directly.
He said there were serious aspects that needed to be addressed by the accused and he thought the man had a degree of lack of insight which would benefit from offence-focused work. He ordered three years probation supervision.
The judge said he did not want to hear of approaches that can arise in small communities where people take an attitude towards the complainant. He commended her courage in pursuing a case of this kind.
An investigating garda told Elis Brennan SC, prosecuting, that the accused man and the woman had been in a long-term relationship, during which time the man worked away from home.
On the weekend of the offence, the couple had a small party at their home and another couple who were their friends, stayed over. The woman went upstairs to bed alone and fell asleep.
She woke to find herself on her left side with her PJ bottoms pulled down to her knees and the accused rubbing his penis around her anal area. She took a moment to realise what was happening before she jumped out of bed asking her partner: “What’s wrong with you, you are sick in the head.”
She locked herself in the bathroom but came out and again told her former partner he was sick in the head. She left the house but came back as it was snowing and she feared being unable to return.
She told the accused man, who was still in bed, to leave and he got in his car and left. She discussed what to do with the other couple and they locked the doors, throwing items out to the accused man when he returned looking for his bank card.
The garda told the court that the relationship between the pair essentially came to an end that night.
There was conversation between the woman and her friend about what she should do and her friend advised her to go to the gardai. The woman did not want to but realised she had to do something.
The woman’s friend went to the gardai on her behalf in May 2018 but was told the woman needed to come to gardai herself. She came into the station the following day and made a complaint.
The accused man was contacted and gave gardai two prepared statements. In his second statement he said he recalled being aroused and rubbing her. He said he was not sure if he touched her anus but could have come in contact with it. He said the woman awoke and “freaked out”.
In her victim impact statement, the woman outlined how the offence had shattered her life and said she now struggled with day to day living. She said at times it had been impossible for her to see a future and she was unable to have the man out of her life as they had shared responsibilities.
She thanked those who had supported her and said the Rape Crisis Centre was “worth its weight in gold.”
Morgan Shelley BL, defending, said his client’s primary source of mitigation was his guilty plea.
He told the court that the man had been prepared to enter a guilty plea to sexual assault since before his first trial and had given a plea of not guilty to section 4 rape but guilty of sexual assault in front of the jury.
There was a disagreement on the rape charge in two trials in March 2020 and February 2022.
He asked the court to take into account his client’s level of cooperation, lack of prior convictions or garda attention and handed in testimonials from his fiancé, family members, a neighbour and a long-term friend.
He said the pair had been in a long-term relationship in which cracks were emerging but his client had engaged in behaviour for which he apologises. He submitted the man had genuine remorse and insight into his offending. He fully accepts he should not have sexually assaulted his partner.
Counsel opened a probation report to the court in which the accused has been assessed as at low risk of sexual reoffending. He said the accused man is now in a new relationship and living locally.
He said the accused had a very good work record and there were no issues in relation to alcohol or psychiatric conditions.
The man had written a letter of apology in which he apologises for what he put the woman through and the impact on her and her life. He said he realised his actions were not acceptable.
He asked the court to take into account that there was an absence of aggravating factors such as violence or degradation. Counsel said his client had been assessed as suitable for community service.
