A WEXFORD man who was threatened with knee-capping unless he pleaded guilty to rape has been jailed for 18 months by Mr Justice Paul Carney for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old baby-sitter.
Nicholas Barry (31), Corach Avenue, Wellingtonbridge, was convicted in May by a jury at the Central Criminal Court of sexually assaulting the girl, but found not guilty of raping her on November 25th, 2006. The girl agreed with defence counsel John O’Kelly SC at the trial that she was aware Barry had been beaten up by her father and another of her relatives as a result of her allegation.
She also agreed she knew he received threats that he would be “knee-capped” unless he pleaded guilty to raping her, but she denied she knew who was making what counsel called “silent phone calls” to him.
Mr O’Kelly revealed at the trial that contrary to what the victim and another witness claimed under oath, phone records showed that no phone call was received by her or made by the witness during the offending.
Barry had pleaded not guilty to both charges and told gardaí that “all that happened was that I ‘shifted’ her”, but admitted he knew she was only 14 years old at the time. “Yes, it was a big mistake and I’m sorry I did it. I’m sorry it happened. It was a spur of the moment thing.”
Prosecuting counsel Sean Gillane BL said that in the view of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the physical activity involved in the offence was at the “lower end of the scale” but the victim’s age was an “aggravating factor”.
Mr Justice Carney said he found “this a most difficult case to resolve” because sentencing was about proportionality and this case involved, on one hand, “an illicit kiss, albeit a most passionate one” while on the other the courts had “to protect a 14-year-old female from sexual exploitation”.
He said Barry had admitted consuming 14 pints of beer as well as cannabis beforehand. “It has been the experience of this court that that sort of lifestyle leads people of good background who leave home with no evil intentions into actions which can bring them before this court, even for homicide.”
The judge added that in such cases the appellate and higher courts showed no mercy. He said that if anyone was displeased with his sentence in this case, their quarrel should be with the DPP and not with him. The DPP had indicated that this case was considered to be at the lower end of the scale for sentence.
He said he took into account the aggravating factors such as the disparity in ages of Barry and the victim and the breach of trust, as well as the effect on the victim.