A former scout leader from Dublin has avoided a jail sentence after being convicted of a sexual assault on a young boy scout in a wood near Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, around 40 years ago.
John Phillips (77), from Drumalee Drive, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7, was found guilty of an indecent assault on a boy in his early teens following a retrial at Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court last November.
The offence occurred on an unknown date between January 1st, 1985 and December 31st, 1986 at Knockree Wood, Co Wicklow, when the victim was aged 13-14.
At a sentencing hearing on Tuesday, Detective Garda Suzanne Ford, gave evidence that the offence occurred when the accused was aged in his late 30s and involved with a scout troop from Pimlico in Dublin.
Det Garda Ford said the scouts including the accused and his victim were on a hike in a wood near Enniskerry, during which a game of hide and seek was played in which the leaders had to find the young scouts.
She said the victim recalled being found by the defendant, whom he knew by the nickname “Junior”, while he was lying on his belly.
The court heard that the young teenager was grabbed by Phillips and turned on his back before the accused put his hand down his trousers and touched him on his private parts for a number of minutes.
The victim recalled that Phillips had told him: “Be quiet and take it like a man.”
The man said he had never told his parents about what happened after he arrived home.
The court heard he had blanked out the incident until years later he saw his abuser in the ILAC Centre in Dublin and verbally confronted him.
Det Garda Ford said the man first reported the matter to gardaí in December 2021.
She told prosecution counsel, James Kelly BL, that Phillips made no comment when interviewed by gardaí in August 2022.
The court heard that he also did not accept the verdict of the jury which found him guilty of indecently assaulting the boy.
In a victim impact statement, the man said the incident had greatly affected his life and he would still suffer nightmares and wake up screaming to the present day.
“There’s not a day goes by that I don’t relive it,” he remarked.
The man said he was also forced to relive what happened during two trials and was in need of regular counselling and medication.
Defence counsel, Karla Ray BL, told the court that Phillips, who has no previous convictions, had a number of health issues including a chronic kidney problem.
The court heard Phillips, who lives with his sisters, was supported by his family who had been left in disbelief by the discovery of his offence which she claimed was “extremely out of character.”
She said the accused had left school at 14 following the death of his father in order to provide for his family and had an extensive work history including over 30 years with a business that made welding equipment, while he was also a volunteer with St John’s Ambulance.
Ms Ray presented a number of character references from other family members which stated that they were happy to leave their children in the care of Phillips.
Pleading for leniency, Ms Ray said the accused no longer posed a risk to society because of his age and health, while any prison term would “amount to a life sentence.”
Acknowledging that Phillips had been well respected in his local community, Judge Patrick Quinn said he also had to take into account the aggravating factor that his offence was carried out when he was in a position of authority and standing “in loco parentis”.
Noting that the offence occurred around 40 years ago and Phillips had not come to Garda attention in the interval, the judge accepted that he was unlikely to pose a threat in the future.
Judge Quinn sentenced Phillips to three years in prison but fully suspended the term on condition that he keep the peace for the duration of the suspended sentence.
