Original sentence overly lenient, court rules

The Court of Criminal Appeal has jailed a former spiritual director of Gormanston College, Co Meath, who sexually abused four pupils there some 30 years ago "with almost catastrophic consequences", to 2½ years in prison.

The three-judge appeal court yesterday upheld arguments by the DPP that Fr Ronald Bennett should have received a custodial sentence for the "extremely serious" offences and not the suspended sentence actually imposed.

While holding that Circuit Court judge Desmond Hogan had correctly imposed a five-year sentence for the offences in July 2006, the Court of Criminal Appeal said Judge Hogan had erred in suspending the entire term and had given too much weight to mitigating factors in favour of Bennett, including his being considered by a clinical psychologist at the Granada Institute as genuinely remorseful and at low risk of reoffending.

It directed that Bennett should serve 2½ years, with the remaining term suspended.

One of Bennett's victims, who was in court, had tears in his eyes when he said afterwards he was "so relieved" a prison term had been imposed.

A Franciscan priest, Bennett (72), Dun Mhuire, Seafield Road, Killiney, Co Dublin, who was also sports master at Gormanston College, had pleaded guilty to six sample charges of assault against four pupils aged between 12 and 13 from 1974-81. He was ordained in 1961 and appointed to Gormanston as spiritual adviser and sports master in 1963.

He became bursar in 1969 and was involved in the Irish Swimming Association from 1974.

A Garda investigation was launched in 1999 after one of Bennett's victims complained of being sexually assaulted at Gormanston while he was a boarder there from 1974.

Mr Justice Daniel Herbert said the victim impact reports indicated the offences had a terrible impact on the boys when they were at school and afterwards.

The boys had made complaints at the time to the school authorities but they were described as liars, indicating that the Franciscan order did not take the complaints as seriously as it should have, he said.

Paul Burns SC, for Bennett, said the trial judge clearly took into account the gravity of the offences. His client had also made early admissions of responsibility, ceased the offending behaviour when he realised it was wrong, had not offended since 1981 and had co-operated with treatment.

Giving the appeal court's judgment, Mr Justice Joseph Finnegan, with Mr Justice Herbert and Mr Justice Paul Gilligan, said the court considered a five-year sentence adequately reflected the seriousness of the offences.

The real difficulty with the sentence, said Mr Justice Finnegan, was the decision to suspend it in its entirety.