GAA coach who ‘destroyed’ boy’s life refused High Court appeal over sentence increase – The Irish Times

A GAA coach who ‘destroyed’ the life of the boy he raped has been refused permission by the High Court to appeal against a four-year sentence increase for what a judge found ‘unusual, shocking and deeply disturbing’ crimes.

At the Central Criminal Court, the man, who cannot be identified to protect the identity of the victim, was sentenced by Judge Michael MacGrath in December 2021 to 10.5 years in prison, with the last 18 months suspended.

On the day he was due to appear in court in April 2021, the man, 43, entered guilty pleas to 15 sample counts, including oral rape, attempted anal rape, sexual assault, false imprisonment, assault causing harm and criminal damage. The court heard evidence of further sexual offenses during a trip to London, but these counts were dropped as they had occurred outside the jurisdiction.

The offenses took place at locations including the man’s home, a sports ground in the Midlands and a hotel in Dublin.

The Central Criminal Court heard the man had been extradited from the US to face charges.

At the Court of Appeal in March, Eilis Brennan SC, for the state, who imposed the sentence, said the victim had suffered a “continuum” of sexual and physical abuse and “emotional torture” over a period of six years. . She told the court the nine-year prison sentence did not reflect the “destruction” of a young man’s life.

Ms Brennan said the child was the victim of multiple rapes and sexual assaults, which started when he was 13 years old and continued until he was 15. She said the ‘constant’ harassment of the victim involved ‘domination, control and humiliation’ and that the injured party “felt he had to leave the university because he was destroyed at every point and ultimately had to quit”.

The successful application saw the Court of Appeal increase the original sentence to 14 years and six months, with the final 18 months suspended, with Ms Justice Tara Burns finding that the sentencing judge had failed to take sufficient account of the “global seriousness” of the perpetrator. .

Mrs Justice Burns said the case involved repeated sexual offences, aggravated by a series of humiliating physical attacks and a wider campaign of intimidation.

The judge described the incident as ‘unusual, shocking and extremely disturbing’. She added: “The injured party, a child for almost all transgressions, and a young man trying to make his way in the world at the end of the transgression, was treated in a manner devoid of humanity, morality and respect.”

The Supreme Court noted that the man’s appeal over the length of the sentence increase related to a case involving 30 counts of oral rape, 37 counts of sexual assault, attempted oral rape, false imprisonment, assault causing harm and criminal damage.

The suspect pleaded guilty to 15 charges, agreeing to the facts of all offenses taken into account as part of the criminal trial.

The suspect had stated in his application to the Supreme Court that he fell in the lower band for sexual violence, that delaying the case was unjust and that there were questions about consent and the age of the victim.

In refusing leave to appeal the increased sentence, Mr Justice Peter Charleton, Mr Maurice Collins and Ms Justice Aileen Donnelly said the Court of Appeal had carried out a “thorough examination of the facts” in assessing of the category of seriousness of the crime and had acknowledged delays in the case.

The High Court judges said there was “nothing” to indicate that any law had been wrongly applied in a “difficult case that had been carefully considered” and that the appropriate upward adjustment to the sentence had been correctly made.