A convicted rapist has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison for the assault of his former partner and their child.
The sentence will not begin until 2029, when the Dublin man has completed the prison sentence he is currently serving for previous sexual offending, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Friday.
The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of the child victim, was found guilty after a trial earlier this year of assaulting his partner and their then 12-year-old child during an argument in April 2018. He had denied two counts of assault causing harm and one count of criminal damage.
Barring order
The court heard that the man disregarded a barring order issued by the court and went to his ex-partner's home. During the argument, the man became physically violent towards the woman. The couple's eldest child attempted to protect his mother but was also assaulted during the argument.
The court heard that the child managed to call gardaí, who arrived at the scene. Photos were handed into court outlining the injuries sustained by the woman and her child. The woman had cuts to her head and face and bruising to her arms. The child sustained cuts to his ankle and thigh.
Edward Doocey BL, prosecuting, read out a victim impact statement on behalf of the woman. In the statement, the woman described that “his actions were inhumane and have broken and destroyed my self-worth”.
“The final memory your children have of you is the beating you gave me and the blood splatter on the walls,” she said.
Previous convictions
The court heard that the man has 31 previous convictions, including convictions for rape, sexual assault and violence against women.
Luigi Rea BL, defending, told the court that his client denies that this incident occurred. He also said that his client's life was distorted by years of drug abuse, but that he had a good work history.
Sentencing the man, Judge Pauline Codd said: “There must be a deterrent, and a message must go out to men that women are not their punching bag.”
She said the most serious aggravating factor was the prolonged assault against his domestic partner of over a decade and that the assault was carried out in front of one of their children.
Judge Codd said she must consider the physical impact on the woman, which can be seen from the images handed into court. In addition, she said the accused had no respect for the court's protection order, his partner and his child.
Judge Codd stated that as there was no guilty plea and no remorse shown by the accused, mitigation was limited to his good work history and his personal circumstances.
Judge Codd sentenced the man to four years in prison and suspended the final six months on a number of conditions. This prison sentence will not begin until 2029, when the sentence he is currently serving has been completed.
