Judges must take account of background of abuse in rape cases, rules court

THE Supreme Court has said sentencing in rape cases, particularly for marital rape involving a pattern of violent and abusive behaviour, must consider all those events.

A judge must not just consider one event in isolation in order to arrive at a “just result”, it said. Rape ordinarily merits a substantial “headline” sentence of about seven years before mitigation is considered and a custodial sentence “is all but inescapable”, Mr Justice Peter Charleton said.

A category of cases merit a headline sentence of 10 to 15 years, before considering mitigation and suspension issues. Violence in the home, breach of trust, domination and a background of abuse are “aggravating circumstances”.

Some cases would require up to life imprisonment and particular emphasis would be placed on the harm rape does to the victim.

The DPP had appealed to the Supreme Court after the

Court of Appeal (COA) reduced the sentences imposed on a man for the rape of his wife, threats to kill her and a hammer attack on her to eight and a half years.

The DPP argued the COA should not have viewed the rape in isolation but rather as a “pattern of violent and abusive behaviour”.

The Supreme Court gave a preliminary judgment setting out principles for sentencing in rape cases and sentencing bands for such cases. It will decide at a later date what sentence should be imposed having heard submissions on its findings.

The case concerned an Irish woman and African man who were married and had a child. In the Central Criminal Court (CCC), the man pleaded guilty to the hammer attack but denied the rape charges and three threats to kill.

He was convicted and concurrent sentences were imposed for each count. The CCC imposed a 14-year headline sentence for the rape, reduced by two years suspension and two years for mitigation, resulting in total prison time of 10 years.

The COA upheld the conviction but reduced the overall sentence to eight years and six months. Giving the Supreme Court judgment, Mr Justice Charleton said the Court of Appeal was wrong in considering the rape alone and the prior offence of threat alone.

Women’s Aid welcomed the judgment, and the group’s CEO, Sarah Benson, said: “The importance of this ruling cannot be under-estimated. The Supreme Court has also laid out sentencing guidelines for cases of rape which recognise that rape where there is an abuse of trust is an aggravating factor when it comes to sentencing.”

‘The importance of this ruling cannot be under-estimated’