By Fiona Ferguson
A man who raped a 19-year-old woman after breaking into her home armed with a crowbar while she slept has been given a 12 year sentence with the final two years suspended.
Daryl McCarthy (29) first orally raped the young woman and when she told him she did not want to have sex raised the crow bar and threatened her: “Do you want a smack of this?”
The Central Criminal Court heard that the victim is still deeply effected by the offences and has moved from her home in an effort to feel safe.
“But it was not an intrusion on a point on a map,” she said, “it was not a matter of geography, my body was the crime scene.”
McCarthy of Whitechapel Crescent, Blanchardstown, pleaded guilty to rape, oral rape and aggravated burglary at the victim’s home, on December 2, 2019.
McCarthy was sentenced last Friday by Ms Justice Tara Burn via video link from prison where he is in isolation due to illness.
Ms Justice Burns said the victim impact statement had been “heart-breaking” in outlining how the young woman had been preparing to start a new life after leaving her family home but instead was violated in this manner in what was supposed to be a safe place.
“The concept that someone safely at home and in comfort of own bed finds them subjected to this kind of violation is beggars’ belief,” said Ms Justice Burns.
She said the offences were “absolutely and utterly dreadful.”
She noted McCarthy said he was extremely intoxicated and had very little recall of events.
She said it was nonetheless behaviour of the absolute upmost gravity.
She said the aggravating factors included the extremely serious nature of the sexual acts perpetrated on the woman despite her protestations and breaking into a woman’s home at night with a crow bar.
She noted in mitigation McCarthy’s good work history, that he is spoken of highly by his current partner and has no relevant previous convictions.
Ms Justice Burns set a headline sentence of 14 years, which she reduced to 12 years taking into account his guilty plea and remorse.
She said in light of the probation report she had received she would suspend a further two years on condition he comply with it’s recommendations.
The conditions of the suspension include offence focused work, following directions of the probation service and not having any direct or indirect contact with the injured party.
She thanked the injured party for attending and said while she is clearly going through a very difficult period she hopes she could manage to get back to her dreams in relation to her career.
In her victim impact statement the woman described how she had been terrified and paralysed with fear during the attack. She continues to suffer effects such as flashbacks, nightmares, PTSD and panic attacks.
She said the exciting life she had been building for herself prior to the attack, now feels foreign and she can hardly remember it.
She told the court she had to move from her home and spoke of becoming increasingly lonely.
“I lost my right to feel safe in my own home” she said, describing how she had installed alarms and sensors.
She outlined how she had moved away to continue her studies as she did not feel safe.
She said until McCarthy’s recent guilty plea she had been undergoing anxiety inducing and traumatic preparation for a trial.
She said McCarthy had destroyed her life and put her family through hell, leaving a permanent scar seared onto her life.
“He had multiple opportunities to stop what he was doing but he chose not to,” she said.
The prosecuting garda told Sean Guerin SC, prosecuting, that the woman was woken at 2.30am as a result of bang on the front door and heard a noise which transpired to be McCarthy accessing her apartment through a rear window with a crow bar.
McCarthy forced the woman to ring a friend who declined to come to the house.
He asked on the phone whether the friend was seeing anyone and threatened to hit the victim with the crow bar.
He told the woman to give him a “blowjob” and held the crow bar against the back of her head moving it while his penis was in her mouth.
He left the room for a time but returned, told her to continue giving him oral sex, again with the crow bar behind her head.
McCarthy then told her to turn around on the bed, she said no as she did not want to have sex and had never had sex before.
He got her to continue with oral sex, touching her breast and vagina. He became more forceful and she began to gag.
He told her to turn around and she again refused.
McCarthy asked her did she want “a smack of the crow bar.”
She again refused and he told her she had two seconds to turn around or he would hit her.
She turned around as she was in fear and he held the crowbar at her back during the rape.
Afterwards McCarthy told her if she opened her mouth he would come back.
The woman made contact with her mother and a complaint was made to gardai.
During the technical examination fingerprints were taken which matched McCarthy and she was able to describe a tattoo on his leg.
He was arrested and told gardai they had consensual sex.
McCarthy pleaded guilty about eight weeks before the trial date.
He is assessed as at medium risk of reoffending.
Michael Bowman SC, defending, said McCarthy had written a letter of apology.
He said he was “truly sorry for everything” and said his actions on the night had been unforgiveable.
He told the woman his actions were not her fault and he hoped she got the help she needed.
Mr Bowman said McCarthy understood the harm he had caused and has taken responsibility for it. He accepted the court will observe the guilty plea should have come at an earlier stage.
He said McCarthy had a history of employment.
He said McCarthy struggles to reconcile what he did with the person presently before the court and his current partner speaks of a person who presents entirely different to the man on the night.
He said too much alcohol had been taken by McCarthy at a family event that night and he ended up entering the woman’s home.
He said McCarthy struggles to understand what happened and can’t offer an explanation or excuse. He submitted there had been an absence of rational thought.