A “high risk” sex offender who was sentenced to six months in jail for failing to attend a meeting with a supervising officer post-release has had his sentence replaced with a fully suspended term on appeal.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty in the District Court to breaching Section 33 (1) of the Sex Offenders Act, 2001 after failing to comply with his supervision period conditions by not attending an appointment with a member of the probation services.
The supervisor today told the District Court Appeals Court that the man had an “overall pattern of non-compliance” in addition to missing the appointment on November 4, 2022.
She said that the man had a “high risk of sexual reoffending” and had engaged in taking drugs.
The man was previously convicted for sexual assault and attempted rape in the Circuit Court in 2017 and was sentenced to five years in custody. The breach of the Sex Offenders Act happened after his release from prison in July 2021.
Counsel for the applicant, Caroline O’Connell BL, said that the man had a diagnosis of drug-induced psychosis and was looking for “one last chance” in appealing the severity of his sentence alone.
She said that her client is not taking drugs at the moment and he had suffered a “lapse” at the time.
Judge Sinéad McMullan decided to suspend the six month custodial sentence for a period of 12 months on the condition that the defendant remain drug free and engages with the probation services.