THE RELEASE of Larry Murphy, one of Ireland’s most notorious sex offenders, highlights major flaws in the legal system, the Rape Crisis Network Ireland has said.
The network, which represents victims of sexual violence and abuse, has called on the Government to act to close gaps in the law that undermines the ability of gardaí to monitor sex offenders.
The network said the legal system should ensure all serious offender sentences should have pre-release risk assessment built into them to reduce the risk to the public. This should include the right to keep high-risk likely reoffenders in custody until they showed they were not a threat, it said.
“Not all sex offenders are the same,” said Fiona Neary, director of the network. “Pre-release risk assessment means that sex offenders can be individually assessed for reduction of harm. Reliable risk assessment can then inform what actions should be taken.
“In many cases, community based ongoing supervision and treatment will be priorities. In cases like this, of a high-risk likely repeat offender, the option of remaining in custody until there is a demonstration of reduction in harm should be available to the authorities,” she added.
The network also criticised the Government’s failure to pass legislation on vetting and soft information, which would enable State agencies to share information about individuals (who may not have been convicted of a crime) but who are suspected to be a risk to communities.
Murphy, a carpenter from Baltinglass, is set to be released from jail on Thursday after serving 10½ years of a 15-year sentence for the rape of a woman in Co Wicklow.
He kidnapped her on February 11th, 2000, drove her into the Wicklow mountains, raped her several times and threw her into the boot of his car with a shopping bag over her head in an apparent attempt to suffocate her.
The woman was saved when two hunters came upon the scene late at night, causing Murphy to flee the area in his car. He was arrested a short time later at his home close to the village of Baltinglass, Co Wicklow.
Murphy was sentenced before the passage of the Sex Offenders Act in 2001 and therefore is not subject to a post-release supervision order, which is a mechanism enabling courts to impose conditions on his release and monitor his compliance with these for a period of time.
In a reply to public calls by Fine Gael TD Billy Timmins for the revocation of Murphy’s right to 25 per cent remission from his sentence, Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern said yesterday there was nothing he could do on the matter.
“I do not have the power to extend his period of detention beyond that date as his sentence will be deemed to have been served by then,” said Mr Ahern in a letter of reply to Mr Timmins.
“However, I can assure you that Mr Murphy’s release will be managed and in that regard, a number of case conferences have been held involving the relevant State agencies to plan for this event,” he added.
Mr Timmins, who is a Wicklow TD, called on Mr Ahern to clarify if Murphy could tell gardaí that he had “no fixed abode” upon release to avoid giving an address that can be monitored.
“While Larry Murphy is obliged to tell the gardaí where he is living within seven days after his release. . . If he has no fixed abode then he does not have to tell the gardaí if he moves from county to county,” Mr Timmins said.