Huge disparity between views of public and judiciary about sentences for sex offenders

AS Judge Karen O’Connor went through the details of Tom Humphries’s crimes, the girl he had abused sat alongside a garda liaison officer at the back of the court. Now a young woman in her 20s, her head was bowed as the judge summarised how Humphries groomed her from the age of 14 and repeatedly defiled her when she was 16.

When the judge announced that she was imposing a two-and-a-half-year sentence for defilement and a concurrent two-year term for the grooming, the former camogie player raised her head and shook it.

A look of exasperation creased her face.

Judging by the outcry which followed, her emotions were shared by a great many people across the country.

Radio shows and social media were convulsed by the brevity of the sentence for offences which robbed a teenager of her innocence and left her feeling suicidal.

Senior gardaí were “disgusted” and now expect the DPP to lodge an appeal, seeking a longer jail term.

However, legal observers were less surprised and are not convinced that an appeal will lead to a longer sentence.

As one experienced prosecutor put it to the Irish

Independent, while the sentence was “a bit on the light side”, it was “not outside the ballpark” for such crimes.

As well as the many aggravating factors of the case, the judge had to take into account several mitigating ones too, including Humphries’s health, his remorse, his previous clean record and, late and all as it was, his plea of guilt.

One thing the Humphries case has made abundantly clear is the huge disparity that exists between the views of the public and the views of the judiciary on what amounts to an appropriate sentence for a sexual offence.

A lack of sentencing guidelines in this area has exacerbated this divide.

There have been many seemingly light sentences in recent times, but equally there have been others which look tough in comparison with how Humphries was dealt with. This week alone a former care worker got a suspended sentence after filming himself sexually assaulting two vulnerable nursing home residents.

In contrast, another man was jailed for five years – twice the term given to Humphries – for offering a schoolboy money for sex. The man’s lack of remorse was identified as a factor behind the length of his sentence.