Offaly man who sexually abused his younger sister jailed for four and a half years

An Offaly man who sexually abused his younger sister during her childhood has been jailed for four and a half years.

Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring, in sentencing, told the woman that she should be proud of herself for taking the step to report her brother, that she was right to do so and wished her well into the future.

She told the young woman that she had been vindicated by her brother’s admissions that he raped her, although she had waited too long for the guilty pleas.

The court heard there was “significant dysfunction” and violence within the family home. The case has divided the family, and the young woman does not have the support of her parents.

The 30-year-old man, who cannot be identified to protect his sister’s identity, pleaded guilty to rape, oral rape and sexual assault of the young girl at their home on dates between 2004 and 2007.

His lawyers told the court the man was introduced to pornography at a young age by peers.

He began abusing his sister when he was 12, and she was just nine years old. The abuse continued until he was 15 years old, and his sister was 12 years old.

The woman described in her impact statement how her brother had instilled fear in her, and she felt vulnerable and terrified walking the street of her hometown, even as an adult.

She told the court how she was left feeling unprotected by the law in the aftermath of making the complaint against her brother as an adult, as she did not qualify for a safety order since she was not in a relationship with her abuser. She called for a change in the law.

The woman, who describes herself as a survivor of sexual abuse, turned to face her brother in court during her impact statement and told him: “You are not a brother …. you are a monster.”

Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring Friday said the woman’s impact statement had been articulate and well thought out. She said right-thinking people would find it hard to disagree with her description of her brother as a monster.

She said the statement spoke of the hurt and terror the child, as she was then, had endured.

She noted how the home had not been a safe place for the young woman as her brother continued to live there, and with the added lack of parental support, she became estranged from her home place.

The judge noted how the young woman had chosen a profession which was testimony to her ability to show the care to others that she had been deprived of in her own home and life.

She said that the accused man had outlined a background of physical abuse and ridicule at the hands of his father but had a close bond with his mother, which had brought its own difficulties.

Ms Justice Ring noted the sibling's father had told gardai, “I don’t want to know anything about abuse” when told of the allegations.

She said their mother was concerned about the impact the offending would have on her reputation and displayed little empathy for her daughter. She did not want her son to plead guilty.

Ms Justice Ring said it was to the accused man’s credit that he had ignored that advice and pleaded guilty. She said he had expressed remorse that was absent on the part of the sibling’s parents.

She said reports before the court detailed that the accused had begun viewing porn at a young age, and this had impacted on him. She noted such early viewing of pornography could become addictive and lead to other addictive behaviours, which was borne out in the accused man’s case as he also had issues with gambling.

The judge noted reports outlined that further intervention was required in relation to his addictions and mental health issues and to understand the consequences of his behaviour.

Ms Justice Ring said the aggravating factors included that the accused was the woman’s older brother and that the abuse took place in the family home.

She said this included the girl’s own bedroom, which was a place of safety for most children but for her was the place of her abuse where no one intervened to help her. She said the parents had failed to see what was happening.

She noted the sibling’s father, in his garda statement, had spoken of the home as being a happy one as far as he was concerned, yet one of his daughters was being raped and abused in this “happy home.”

She said the court was satisfied that the accused knew what he was doing was gravely and seriously wrong.

The judge said the primary mitigation in the case was the man’s guilty pleas. She noted how the woman had described how the late guilty pleas and his initial denials had added to her distress.

Ms Justice Ring said this was sadly a common experience for victims, but the court could not overlook that the added trauma of giving evidence in a trial had been avoided, and the accused was entitled to credit for his guilty plea.

She said that if the accused man had been an adult at the time of the offending, the headline sentence would have been 13 years, but taking into account that he had been a child, that there had been no further complaints, and that he had shown remorse, she set a headline sentence of six and a half years.

Ms Justice Ring also took into account he had no prior convictions and had pleaded guilty and made a further reduction of 12 months, setting a headline sentence of five and a half years.

She said in this case, she was also concerned about his mental health issues and the need to address his sexual offending, victim empathy and addictions.

She suspended the final 12 months on strict conditions, including that he engage in therapy and services related to those issues and have no contact with his sister for five years from his release.

At a previous hearing, the young woman had read her own impact statement to the court and described the ongoing impact of the abuse on her life, including struggles with her mental health and emotions, trust issues, anxiety, nightmares, flashbacks, PTSD and feeling worthless.

She said she is constantly reminded of how many opportunities she has missed out on.

The investigating garda told Patricia McLaughlin SC, prosecuting, that the vast majority of the abuse took place in the accused man’s bedroom, where he would lock the doors and pretend they were watching a movie. His sister was in third or fourth class when the abuse began.

The abuse included rape, oral and digital penetration of the child’s vagina. She told how her brother would put a pillow over her head or a hand over her mouth to stop her screaming.

She said the abuse would take place anytime he had the chance, and he made threats to kill her. She also described how he forced her to watch pornography.

The woman made a complaint to gardai as an adult. Her brother made an attempt on his own life, and the woman withdrew her complaint. She outlined how she had been made to feel guilty.

Three years later, she made a fresh complaint and also outlined how her brother had forced her to have sex with another boy while they were on holiday when she was 11 years old.

The accused man was arrested and denied the offences. A suicide note he had written prior to the attempt on his life was put to him, but he said it had nothing to do with the allegations.

He conceded he had shown his sister pornography and “had not been the best of brothers”.

The man, who has previous convictions for road traffic offences, went into custody voluntarily.

The garda agreed with Dean Kelly SC, defending, that there was violence toward the man and his mother within the family home at the hands of their father.

The garda agreed that despite both parents being professional people, there was “significant dysfunction” behind closed doors and their home “would not have been a great place to grow up.”

The garda agreed that the injured party had not received the support from her parents that one might expect to have been offered.

In her victim impact statement, the young woman told the court her older brother had “robbed me of my childhood and stolen my innocence”. She described how she had pleaded with him to stop, but he continued to abuse her, even during childhood games.

The woman described the terror and constant fear her brother had instilled in her, leaving her feeling vulnerable and alone throughout her whole life. She described him as a master manipulator.

She told the court how she was abused at home, which should have been a place of love and safety.

She said she had been made to feel guilty after her brother’s suicide attempt and withdrew her statement. She described how she left home and, after later moving back to her home town, reported the abuse again. She said she was not going to let the man take control of her life.

She said her brother had shown no remorse and dragged the case out, only entering a guilty plea one month before the trial. She said the case had divided her family, with her mother and father listening to her brother’s lies, leaving her without support from her parents.

She said she was now hoping to start a new chapter in her life.

“I give over all of what I carried to him to carry and stand in my power for the first time in my life,” she told the court. She thanked her sister, best friend and her extended family who had supported her. She also thanked the gardai and the Rape Crisis Centre.

Mr Kelly outlined the details of a psychological report to the court, setting out the man’s personal circumstances and family background.

He said the siblings had grown up in a household of “significant and profound” dysfunction.

He said the man worked locally and his employer, who was aware of the case, had a letter for the court and was willing to offer him work in the future.

He outlined that his client had been introduced to pornography in his first year of secondary school and began viewing it on computers at home. He noted the report's remarks in relation to the psychological effects on children who are exposed to pornography and sexual violence online.

Mr Kelly said his client’s decision to plead guilty had been difficult, with his mother advising him to deny the charges. He said it appeared his client had gained some insight into his behaviour with the benefit of time away from his parents to reflect.

He submitted his client had mental health issues and was operating on a low intellectual level.

He said the man had expressed remorse in broad statements but struggled with the harm he caused. He said he has limited recall of the events.

He asked the court to give the man credit for the fact that while those who support him had pulled him in one direction, his sense of what was right had pulled him in another direction.