A 39-year-old man who had sex with a 12-year-old girl after buying her four Bacardi Breezers and two vodkas has been jailed for three years by Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
The separated Dublin man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to unlawful carnal knowledge with the child on May 18th 2002.
He brought her and some of his own children, who are all under 14 years of age, to a local off-license to buy the alcohol before they all returned to his house to drink.
The victim, who was a friend of the man's daughter, went to bed around midnight, where she shared a double bed with her friend.
At 3.30 a.m. she woke up to get sick, when the man approached her and proceeded to have full sexual intercourse with her. The girl then fled to her sister's house and reported the incident at Shankhill Garda Station.
Judge Frank O'Donnell noted from the victim impact statement that the girl described herself as feeling "dirty, angry and depressed" as a result of the incident. She had since developed a drug problem and is afraid of being left alone.
He also acknowledge that the man now suffered from depression and had tried to commit suicide on numerous occasion, including taking a very serious overdose. His relationship with two of his children has also deteriorated.
Judge O'Donnell accepted favourable testimonials from a number of referees on behalf of the man but said he must mark the seriousness of the offence stating that "innocence was taken from a young child."