A Waterford man who fathered a baby by his daughter and was jailed for nine years in 1996 has been released with the balance of his sentence suspended. The decision was made by the Central Criminal Court.
Ms Justice McGuinness refused to suspend the balance of the 65-year-old man's sentence last year because she felt it was not appropriate at that time.
She adjourned a decision last month so she could have the benefit of further reports before finalising the case.
She has released the man on strict conditions, including that he remain in contact with the probation services and not make any contact either with the victim or her family unless they contacted him.
Ms Justice McGuinness had noted previously that she could not keep him in continuous "preventive detention" solely because of his daughter's concerns.
She also noted the submission by Mr Hugh Hartnett SC, defending, that the man was prepared to give a voluntary undertaking not to contact his son when he was released.
Mr Maurice Gaffney SC, prosecuting, had earlier submitted the concerns expressed by the victim about possible contact with her son and also about the continued hostile attitude of her sisters to her.
Mr Hartnett noted that the victim's concerns about contact could possibly exist also when her father's sentence expired naturally.
The man, 61 at the time, was jailed on December 19th, 1996, after he pleaded guilty to five charges of having unlawful carnal knowledge of his daughter on dates from June 1975, when she was 11 years old, to December 1985. He originally faced 46 charges.
When she sentenced him in 1996, Ms Justice McGuinness said she found it disturbing that the defendant appeared to be trying to blame his daughter by suggesting she had flaunted herself naked in front of him.
The court was told the victim was called "daddy's mistress" and "daddy's girl" by her mother when she tried to confide in her. Her sisters were also unhelpful.
Her father's abuse continued for 10 years until she had the baby he fathered. She first confided in her husband several years later.
The defendant initially denied that he had had frequent intercourse with his daughter but eventually admitted having sex with her when she was 18. The court heard the abuse happened in their house, in a shed and in the family car.
The court also heard in December 1996 that the family was totally split over the case, with most of her siblings siding with their father. Two of the victim's sisters who gave evidence for their father agreed there was animosity towards the victim.