'My sister saved me that day': Girl pays emotional tribute to sister who intervened in sexual assault

David Raleigh

A young Limerick man, who admitted sexually assaulting a girl in front of their friends when they were both aged 14, has been remanded on bail for sentencing.

The defendant and the victim, who are now aged 18, were each supported by members of their families at the man’s sentencing hearing at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court.

The man pleaded guilty to one count of sexually assaulting the victim on May 7th, 2022.

The defendant cannot be named by an order of the Supreme Court, which prohibits the identification of persons convicted of committing criminal offences while they were under 18.

The defendant’s sentencing court heard that he did, without warning, wrap himself around the victim from behind and anally penetrate her with one of his fingers.

The sexual assault occurred in front of a group of their friends, including the victim’s sister, after they had met up in a residential area on the afternoon in question.

“This is happening in broad daylight in (named area) in front of ten people,” said prosecuting barrister Lily Buckley, BL.

“He (defendant) anally penetrated her, and she immediately bled from this forced invasion,” Ms Buckley added.

The victim’s sister physically forced the defendant off of her sister when she realised the victim was in distress, the court heard.

The defendant wiped the victim’s blood off of his hand on a friend’s t-shirt at the scene and shouted: “There’s a smell of fish off her, lads”.

Lily Buckley, prosecuting counsel, said: “What happened was against her will, and then, this statement by the accused that ‘she smelled’, which was inaccurate, was further degrading.”

The victim told gardaí the defendant grabbed her underwear from inside her pants and forcibly pulled them upwards. She said she told him to “stop” and to leave her alone, but he continued.

The court heard that their group of friends initially believed the defendant had only been messing.

The victim said she tried to push the defendant away “so I could run”, but he put his hand down the back of her pants and sexually assaulted her.

The victim said she froze with fear, and the defendant only stopped when her sister intervened.

The victim was collected from the scene by her mothe,r who immediately brought her to a sexual assault treatment unit (SATU) where a medical assessment found her complaint to be consistent with a sexual assault.

A number of the youths who had been present at the time of the assault gave statements to gardai corroborating the girl’s complaint

The girl attended her GP, a psychologist, and the HSE’s Child and Adolescent Mental Health Servcies (CAMHS) “as it has left a strain on her mental health, understandably,” said Ms Buckley.

The court heard the defendant and the victim continue to live in close proximity to one another.

Ms Buckley read out a victim impact statement written by the girl who said that since the attack three years ago, she has “lost all confidence” and finds it challenging to leave her house without a family member being with her.

The victim said she also “struggled” returning to school afterwards, knowing everyone in school knew what happened to her.

The victim said she finds it “hard to trust” males particularly, and “finds it hard to sleep most nights”.

“My sister saved me that day, and I am so grateful to her,” the victim wrote.

The defendant’s barrister, Joe McMahon, BL, asked the court to take into account the defendant’s admission of guilt, which he said meant the victim was not required to give evidence in court or be cross-examined by the defendant’s defence barrister.

Mr McMahon said the defendant’s actions had been a “lapse of judgement”.

“It’s not a moment of glory for him in any shape or form, he is extremely remorseful, and he has expressed shame.”

Mr McMahon said the defendant had had little understanding of sex at the time, and the probation service has suggested that it might be beneficial if the defendant engaged in a tailored sexual education programme as well as writing a letter of apology to the victim.

Judge Colin Daly said he had “much to consider” and that he would pass sentence at a later date.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.