A custodial sentence of 9 years and 6 months and a further probation period of one year imposed on a 91-year-old former monk for historical offences of indecent assault, buggery and attempted buggery was unduly lenient, and was replaced with a custodial term of 12 years.
AGE BUGGERY CHILD SEX OFFENCES DELAY GUILTY PLEAS HISTORICAL OFFENCES INDECENT ASSAULT NORTHERN IRELAND PROBATION ORDERS REDUCTION OF SENTENCE SENTENCING UNDUE LENIENCY
A sentence of five months’ imprisonment which had been imposed on a father following his conviction for sexually assaulting his two-year-old son was unduly lenient. The offence merited a sentence of 18 months’ imprisonment together with the imposition of a sexual offences prevention order.
NORTHERN IRELAND SENTENCE LENGTH SENTENCING SEXUAL ASSAULT OF CHILD UNDER 13 SEXUAL OFFENCES PREVENTION ORDERS UNDUE LENIENCY
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission had no standing to seek a declaration that abortion law in Northern Ireland was incompatible with ECHR art.3 and art.8 because it had not instituted proceedings by identifying any unlawful act or any actual or potential victim. Although the Supreme Court therefore had no jurisdiction to make a declaration of incompatibility, it considered that the current law was disproportionate and incompatible with art.8 insofar as it prohibited abortion in cases of fatal foetal abnormality and where pregnancy resulted from rape or incest.
ABORTION art.8 CRIMINAL LAW DECLARATIONS OF INCOMPATIBILITY ECHR 1950 art.3 HEALTH INCEST INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT JURISDICTION LOCUS STANDI NORTHERN IRELAND NORTHERN IRELAND HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OFFENCES AGAINST THE PERSON RAPE RIGHT TO LIFE RIGHT TO RESPECT FOR PRIVATE AND FAMILY LIFE
The failure to provide exceptions to the law in Northern Ireland prohibiting abortion in respect of fatal foetal abnormality at any time, and pregnancies due to sexual crime up to the date when a foetus became capable of an existence independent of its mother, was contrary to the ECHR art.8.
ABORTION art.12 art.14 art.2 art.34 art.46 art.6 art.8 art.8(1) CORONERS ACT (NORTHERN IRELAND) 1959 1959 CORONERS ACT (NORTHERN IRELAND) 1959 s.14(1) CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT (NORTHERN IRELAND) 1945 s.25 CRIMINAL LAW DISCRIMINATION ECHR 1950 art.1 EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS 1950 art.3 HUMAN RIGHTS INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT NORTHERN IRELAND OFFENCES AGAINST THE PERSON ACT 1861 s.58 PROHIBITION ON TERMINATION OF PREGNANCY WITH FATAL FOETAL ABNORMALITY OR WHERE PREGNANCY RESULTED FROM SEXUAL CRIME RAPE RIGHT TO LIFE RIGHT TO RESPECT FOR PRIVATE AND FAMILY LIFE s.25(1) s.59 WHETHER BREACH OF ART.8 ECHR
In a criminal case concerning historical sexual offences, the judge had not favoured the prosecution in his directions to the jury, and the appellate court was not left with any sense of unease about the safety of the convictions.
“HISTORIC” OFFENCES CHILD SEX OFFENCES CREDIBILITY CRIMINAL EVIDENCE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE INDECENT ASSAULT JURY DIRECTIONS NORTHERN IRELAND UNSAFE CONVICTIONS
In a high-profile case concerning historical sexual offences, the trial judge had not erred in her approach to pre-trial publicity, had properly summed up the defence case, and had given the jury proper directions as to the burden and standard of proof, lies and inconsistencies.
CHILD SEX OFFENCES CREDIBILITY CRIMINAL EVIDENCE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE JURY DIRECTIONS NORTHERN IRELAND PUBLICITY
A determinate sentence of two years was appropriate in the case of a 27-year-old man who had pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual activity with a 15-year-old girl.
NORTHERN IRELAND SENTENCE LENGTH SENTENCING SEXUAL ACTIVITY WITH CHILDREN SEXUAL OFFENCES PREVENTION ORDERS
The Northern Ireland Court of Appeal reiterated the approach set out in R. v McKeown (Gary) [2013] NICA 28, namely that although assistance might be derived from the aggravating and mitigating features identified by the England and Wales Sentencing Guidelines Council in its definitive guidance, judges and practitioners in Northern Ireland were not constrained by those guidelines.
ATTEMPTS CORONERS AND JUSTICE ACT 2009 s.125(1) DOMESTIC BURGLARY NORTHERN IRELAND SENTENCE LENGTH SENTENCING SENTENCING GUIDELINES SEXUAL OFFENCES
A judge in an historic sexual offences trial had not erred in declining to discharge a juror who had known a witness’s husband through work only well enough to say hello to in passing. The judge had ascertained that the juror felt that she could remain faithful to her oath and there had been no objectively justified or legitimate doubt as to her impartiality.
BIAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE DISCHARGE OF JURY NORTHERN IRELAND SEXUAL OFFENCES WITNESSES
The Court of Appeal of Northern Ireland did not have jurisdiction to hear a purported appeal under the Criminal Appeal (Northern Ireland) Act 1980 against the lifting of reporting restrictions following a young offender’s conviction for serious sexual offences as the order had not been made on conviction as was required by s.8. The interim reporting restriction order had been made shortly before the giving of sentence.
ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE ANONYMITY APPEAL AGAINST LIFTING OF REPORTING RESTRICTIONS ON YOUNG OFFENDER APPEALS AGAINST SENTENCE art.22(1) art.22(2) art.22(3) art.3 art.8 CRIMINAL APPEAL (NORTHERN IRELAND) ACT 1980 s.8 CRIMINAL JUSTICE (CHILDREN) (NORTHERN IRELAND) ORDER 1998 art.22 CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT 1988 s.159(1)(c) CRIMINAL PROCEDURE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS 1950 art.6 JURISDICTION NORTHERN IRELAND OPEN JUSTICE ORDER NOT MADE ON CONVICTION REPORTING RESTRICTIONS s.159 SEXUAL OFFENCES SEXUAL OFFENCES (AMENDMENT) ACT 1992 s.1 YOUNG OFFENDERS
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