A MAN who twice tried to have his estranged wife killed has been refused permission to appeal to the Supreme Court against the severity of his seven-year sentence.
The three-judge Court of Criminal Appeal (CCA) yesterday ruled Patrick Rafferty, who was jailed over hiring an undercover garda to kill his wife, had failed to show that any point of law arose in relation to his sentence that was of such exceptional public importance it required determination by the Supreme Court.
Rafferty (41) had pleaded guilty to soliciting Det Garda Patrick Crowley to murder his wife, Mary Rafferty, on February 7th, 2005, at an area between the Five Alleys public house, Nenagh, Co Tipperary, and Daly’s Cross, Castleconnell, Co Limerick.
Rafferty, a haulier of Ballina, Co Tipperary, had offered Det Crowley €15,000 to kill his wife by faking a road accident.
He was jailed for seven years by Mr Justice Paul Carney at the Central Criminal Court in January 2007.
The CCA rejected his appeal in December 2007 and Rafferty then sought to have his case heard by the Supreme Court.
Rafferty’s lawyers argued that a point of law related to the element of deterrence built into the sentence was of such exceptional public importance as to require determination by the Supreme Court.
It was argued Rafferty’s action was “a once-off” and the sentencing judge was consequently not entitled to increase the sentence in order to deter others from doing the same thing.
Yesterday the CCA, with Ms Justice Fidelma Macken presiding and sitting with Mr Justice Roderick Murphy and Mr Justice Eamon de Valera, rejected arguments the matter should be referred.
Ms Justice Macken said Mr Justice Carney did not include a substantial deterrence factor when sentencing Rafferty, but had regard to an element of deterrence as one of a number of factors to be taken into account.
Rafferty’s trial heard the father of three had offered the detective €15,000 and also indicated he could probably come up with another €5,000. Rafferty suggested the undercover garda stage a road traffic incident in which he would “run her car off the road”.
Rafferty also told the garda, if the accident was not successful, he was to “do her neck in” at which point he made a choking gesture.
Five months earlier, in another effort to solicit somebody to kill his wife, Rafferty had paid €8,000 to a well-known criminal, who “saw him as a soft touch” and ripped him off.