A man who sexually abused his younger sister in their family home 30 years ago has been jailed for four years.
The man was aged 16 when he committed the first of five offences of sexual abuse on his then eight-year-old sister. The other four offences occurred over the following three years.
The woman described in her victim impact report how the abuse had a profound impact on her life, with her innocence and sense of safety being ripped away.
She described how even as an adult she felt “crippled” when her brother was in the same house and as a result had been “robbed of family milestone occasions” and “simple visits to my mother.”
She said a big brother was supposed to be someone who protected you, not abused you.
Guilty plea
The 46-year-old Dublin man pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to indecent assault, three counts of sexual assault, and oral rape at their family home on dates between March 1990 and February 1994. He has no previous convictions.
A prosecuting garda told Dominic McGinn SC, prosecuting, that the woman recalled five specific acts of sexual abuse at the hands of her brother when she was aged between eight and 11 years old. He was aged between 16 and 20 years old at the time.
She outlined the five incidents which included putting his penis in her mouth, digital penetration, forced masturbation and rubbing against her naked until he ejaculated.
Family home
The woman told her mother when she was 17 years old. Her mother was shocked and her brother, then in his 20s, was confronted. He made admissions and was asked to leave the house.
He returned to the family home after a few months, which upset the victim as she felt there had been no consequences for him. She began attending counselling as a 23-year-old and a “confrontation” with her brother was arranged. The woman felt this had been dealt with inappropriately.
In 2018 after the birth of her children and a bereavement, she described herself as “falling apart emotionally” and she made a complaint to gardaí.
The accused man was interviewed by gardai and accepted what his sister had told them. “What I done was horrible I know she will never forgive me for the pain I caused her,” he told gardai.
Consequences
The garda agreed with Caroline Biggs SC, defending, that there were no other allegations against the man, that he is now ostracised from his family and has lost his own children.
Ms Biggs said in the summer when the offending began, the accused man had been exposed to pornography and seems to have become preoccupied with sex for a time as a teenager. She said he had used his younger sister, which he knew was wrong but his sexual urges had outweighed it.
She said there was no evidence of further offending, and he has been assessed as at low risk of sexual re-offending. A psychiatrist’s report outlined he does not have a sexual interest in children.
Ms Biggs said he had co-operated with gardaí and made full and complete admissions. She said he had indicated genuine insight into the harm done to his sister at a young age and through her life.
Aggravating factors
She asked the court to take into account that on two occasions in the past he had made full admissions. She said other people did not deal with that as they should have, but that was no fault of his. Counsel said he had paid a terrible price for his actions.
Mr Justice Michael White took into account aggravating factors such as the breach of trust between a sister and brother, the eight-year age gap and the severe effects of the abuse on the victim.
He noted the man had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and co-operated with Gardai. He took into account the man had accepted his guilt as far back as 1999 and his remorse was “of a very genuine nature.” He said the accused is at is a low risk of re-offending.
Mr Justice White said there had been an “understandable” delay in the woman coming forward with her complaint, but noted the man has paid a high price in his personal life. He took into account that the accused man was a minor for two years of the three-year offending period
Mr Justice White set a headline sentence of nine years, but noted there was substantial and unusual mitigation due to the particular facts of this case. He imposed concurrent sentences totalling four years and ordered 18 months post-release supervision.
Mr Justice White noted in sentencing that the woman felt that the counselling session the man attended had been handled badly, but that the therapist in her account had a different perspective.
