Court of Appeal: Sentence reduced for man convicted of assaulting girlfriend’s alleged rapist

About this case:

• Judgment:
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Delivering the judgment of the three-judge Court of Appeal, Mr Justice Alan Mahon found that the sentencing judge had attached undue weight to the aggravating factors in sentencing, and that on a proper consideration of the mitigating factors, the more appropriate sentence was one of thirty-six months with the final eighteen months suspended.

Background

In September 2013, the two victims of the assault, Mr O’Meara and Mr Hadi, were in their room at the Radisson Hotel in Dublin 2, when Mr Sean O’Dea forced his way into the room armed with a metal wheel brace.

Mr O’Dea maintained that shortly before the assault, his girlfriend had claimed that she had been raped by Mr Hadi some hours earlier in the hotel room.

Mr O’Meara was persuaded to open the bedroom door on the pretence that Mr O’Dea’s girlfriend had returned to collect some belongings earlier left behind by her.

On opening the door Mr O’Meara was confronted by Mr O’Dea in an aggressive state and wielding the wheel brace, and being urged by his girlfriend to attack Mr Hadi.

In the ensuing struggle, Mr O’Meara was hit on the head several times by the wheel brace. Mr O’Dea smashed a glass over Mr O’Meara’s head and struck and lacerated Mr Hadi’s lip with the broken glass. Mr Hadi was also struck with the wheel brace.

Both victims sustained significant injuries, and although the rape allegation against Mr Hadi was pursued to the extent that he was arrested and interviewed by the Gardaí, ultimately there was no prosecution.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court

In the course of the proceedings against Mr O’Dea, Mr O’Dea offered the victims €10,000 in compensation, which was declined.

In February 2016, Mr O’Dea pleaded guilty and was convicted at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court of three offences: two counts of assault contrary to s. 3 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against The Person Act 1997, and one of production of an article capable of inflicting serious injury contrary to s. 11 of the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Acts 1990.

In April 2016, in circumstances where the maximum sentence for each offence was one of five years imprisonment, sentences of three and a half years imprisonment and three years’ imprisonment were imposed in respect of the first two offences, and the third offence was taken into consideration.

Court of Appeal

Mr O’Dea’s grounds of appeal were summarised as follows:-

It was also argued on behalf of Mr O’Dea that the sentencing judge incorrectly took into consideration the fact that the alleged rape was ultimately not prosecuted. However, Justice Mahon rejected this claim, being satisfied that the sentencing judge accepted that Mr O’Dea “was, rightly or wrongly, of the genuine belief that a rape had indeed occurred”.

In particular, Mr O’Dea contended that the sentencing judge failed to afford sufficient weight to the mitigating factors, including:

Provocation

In relation to the provocation issue, Justice Mahon explained that provocation “in its strict legal sense” was absent given the gap in time between Mr O’Dea being told of the rape allegation and his confrontation with his two victims, and furthermore, that there was some suggestion of premeditation in the fact that within this period of time Mr O’Dea “took the opportunity to arm himself with the wheel brace”.

Notwithstanding the reality that “physically attacking the victims in a very violent fashion was completely unjustified”, the Court was satisfied that there was “in very general terms an element of provocation, and also pressure from his female companion, to act aggressively towards the victims”.

Conclusion

Justice Mahon found that there was an error in principle in that a headline sentence of five years suggested that “undue weight was afforded to the aggravating factors”.

Identifying the appropriate headline sentence in the region of three and a half years – in recognition of the mitigating factors and to incentivise rehabilitation the final eighteen months of both sentences were suspended.

Mr O’Dea was also ordered to donate the sum of €10,000 to a nominated charity.