Donegal teacher jailed for indecently assaulting a student has appeal dismissed

A secondary school teacher who 40 years ago told a 13-year-old pupil she indecently assaulted that she was herself a victim of sexual assault did so as part of a “grooming” process, the Court of Appeal has ruled.

“Whatever way one looks at this, the evidence disclosed inappropriate and continuing conduct,” said Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy on Thursday, rejecting an argument by Jacinta McSherry O'Connor, 64, that the jury in her trial should not have heard that she told the 13-year-old boy about her own assault.

McSherry O’Connor, The Mullins, Donegal Town, pleaded not guilty to two counts of indecently assaulting a male student in 1985, but she was found guilty following a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court trial in October 2023.

The court heard that she indecently assaulted the boy on two occasions in his home on dates between June 1 and September 1, 1985, while giving him grinds. She was aged 24 at the time and the boy was 13.

At a previous hearing, the man, now in his fifties, stated in a victim impact statement that McSherry O’Connor had been like a “spectre” hanging over him his whole life. He said she took his innocence away and that what happened was “deeply and morally wrong”.

McSherry O’Connor was sentenced by Judge Elma Sheahan to three years on each count concurrently, with the final six months suspended.

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Launching an appeal against her conviction, McSherry O'Connor's legal team asserted that the trial judge erred by refusing to accede to an application to exclude portions of her interview with gardaí, in which she referenced an alleged incident with another senior teacher where she said she was the victim of a sexual assault.

At the Court of Appeal in October, counsel for the appellant, Marc Thompson BL, said that his client had given these details of being the victim of sexual assault in a statement she made, which the prosecution introduced into evidence. He said that these portions of her statement should not have been given to the jury in the case.

Concerning her disclosure of this alleged assault to the student, Mr Thompson said that the appellant, who was 24 at the time while the boy was 12, had just been the victim of sexual assault herself, so she “blurted it out” to the boy.

In delivering the Court of Appeal’s judgement, Ms Justice Kennedy said that it was the court’s view that the impugned material was relevant and necessary.

“Grooming of a child is, by definition, an ongoing continuing process and may be multifaceted in its nature. The behaviour may seek to try and develop a connection between the adult and the minor over time,” she said.The judge went on to note that the appellant was aware the child had a crush on her and she maintained inappropriate sexualised conversations with him.

“Whatever way one looks at this, the evidence disclosed inappropriate and continuing conduct on the appellant’s part, which (the State) was entitled to rely upon as evidence of grooming,” said Ms Justice Kennedy.
Saying that the court was not persuaded by the argument advanced by the defence, Ms Justice Kennedy ruled that the appeal was dismissed.