A Kilkenny man who paid £9,000 to a woman he had sexually assaulted has been given a four-year suspended sentence. Passing sentence in the Central Criminal Court yesterday, Mr Justice Kinlen said: "Prison should be a last resort and should not be used as a dumping ground." It cost £800 a week to keep an offender in jail.
The payment in this case was not compensation but a penalty imposed on the defendant at no cost to the taxpayer. The judge stressed the court was not measuring damages. The woman was entitled to take a totally separate civil action against her attacker if she wished.
John Shiel (26), single, of High Street, Ballyragget, committed the offence in the area on April 4th, 1994. He pleaded guilty in December 1995 and the case was adjourned on bail to allow him to raise the money.
The court heard Shiel had paid the £9,000 and had not come under Garda notice since 1994.
The judge recalled evidence that Shiel had been very friendly at one time with the victim but the situation cooled and he started going out with another woman. On the night of the incident, Shiel met the victim while out drinking and the friendship revived somewhat. Later, Shiel grabbed her, ripped her clothes and said she need not worry about getting pregnant. She ran off. She would never get over the sexual invasion by force.