RCNI welcome today’s decision by Judge Carney to revoke Bail in the Patrick O’Brien sexual abuse case

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Caroline Counihan, RCNI Legal Director said, ‘RCNI welcome the news that Patrick O’Brien will now go to jail and start his sentence.

We commend Judge Carney for recognising and apologising for his earlier decision on bail and in taking swift action to revoke that bail for Patrick O’Brien. We feel this is appropriate given the seriousness of the case. We hope Fiona Doyle feels that she has been heard and taken seriously within the criminal justice system and that this action by the court Judge can go some way to healing the trauma she expressed after the sentence hearing on Monday.

‘Judge Carney also spoke about wanting to involve other judges in the decisions he was faced with on Monday. We hope that judges will use the experience of this case to work with others concerned with the criminal justice system to look at establishing guidelines for sentencing. The RCNI will also continue to support judges in whatever way appropriate, including calling for the full resourcing of the sentencing database to assist judges.’

 

Rape Crisis Network Ireland call for the end of granting bail after a conviction for rape

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Following the latest controversial sentencing of a convicted serious sexual offender, RCNI call for renewed urgency in reforming sentencing and bail practices.

Fiona Neary, Executive Director said, ‘sentencing is the final stage of a long and arduous journey for a survivor of rape and sexual crimes. It is estimated that only 2- 5% of all rapes will reach this point, as most victims will choose not to make any report. Sentencing for this small number of survivors is a vindication of not only their own rights and dignity but a resounding signal to fellow survivors that the State takes the violence they have experienced seriously. When a sentence fails to satisfy the dignity of the individual survivor, it fails other survivors who will never have their day in court.

‘This latest sentencing decision, where Patrick O’Brien was released on continued Bail having been given a 12 year custodial sentence, comes on the back of other controversial sentences over the past few months.

‘Consistency in sentencing continues to be of concern. While the average length of a sentence for rape is 9 years and 3 months (RAJI) there is variety in the final sentences for each individual case beyond the individual characteristics of cases. RCNI continue to strongly advocate for sentencing guidelines for judges to support consistency.

‘The RCNI are also advocating a number of reforms to bail practices. As recommended by Rape and Justice in Ireland 2009, Bail in rape cases should always be subject to strict conditions especially considering RAJI found 77% of defendants (for all rape cases between 2000 & 2005) are granted bail at some stage in the criminal justice process. However, Bail should not be granted to a defendant who has been convicted of rape as it is anticipated that a custodial sentence will follow. It is our firm belief, and a conclusion of the RAJI researchers, that bail after conviction cannot serve justice. Additionally, in the past it has permitted convicted rapists to abscond to avoid justice.’

Notes:

  • Figures above from RAJI: Rape & Justice in Ireland: a national study of Survivor, prosecutor and court responses to rape, Conor Hanly with Deirdre Healy and Stacey Scriver, RCNI, Liffey Press 2009
  • Sentences that have caused controversy recently have included the sentencing of Anthony Lyons and Graham Griffiths who were both fined 75,000 and 15,000 respectively alongside greatly and entirely suspended sentences.

Rape, Pregnancy and Abortion in Ireland – RCNI release new figures today

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Today Rape Crisis Network Ireland (RCNI) release the latest figures on survivors of rape who were pregnant as a result, who had abortions.

 In 2011, of the 2,036 female survivors of sexual violence who attended a Rape Crisis Centre (RCC),

  • 90 girls and women became pregnant as a result of rape
  • 17 survivors, pregnant as a result of rape, terminated the pregnancy.
  • Two survivors became pregnant more than once as a result of rape and had different outcomes in each pregnancy.

Fiona Neary, RCNI Executive Director said, ‘in the abortion debate there has been some talk about the case of women who have been raped and are pregnant as a result. It is important this discussion is informed by the best available facts and a compassionate understanding of the realities facing these girls and women in Ireland.

‘90 girls and women, who were pregnant after rape, were supported in Rape Crisis Centres (RCC) across Ireland in 2011. These numbers represent one part of the picture as not all rape survivors seek or can access RCC support.

 ‘It is also important to bear in mind that these numbers cannot tell us how, why and under what circumstances those outcomes came about. They do not tell us about a survivor’s circumstances, age, resources, access to information and support or their relationship to the rapist.

‘When drawing on the example of rape survivors an assumption can sometimes be made that the decisions are somehow simplified, feelings are straightforward and that moral and ethical complexities are largely nullified by the fact of conception through rape. This is not the rape crisis experience.

‘For many women and teenagers pregnancy resulting from rape can cause additional trauma and certainly complexities; these demand our greatest compassion. RCNI would urge commentators to remember this when they reach for the example of rape victims in the abortion debate.’

Notes:

  • RCNI is the national representative body for the Rape Crisis Sector in Ireland
  • All statistics are from the RCNI Database©
  • Additional figures of the 90 girls and women who were pregnant after rape in 2011, 60 survivors went to term, of whom 12 had their child adopted or fostered. A further 11 miscarried or had stillbirths. Please go to www.rcni.ie/rcni-publications.aspx for full fact sheet with graph.