Teacher who abused a boy has appeal application rejected Ruaidhrí Giblin Published 19/12/2014 | 20:25 Irish Independent A former secondary school teacher, who abused a boy from a position of esteem and authority, has had an application to review his sentence rejected by the Court of Appeal. Michael Byrne (77), of Rosewell, Templerainey, Arklow, pleaded guilty to four sample counts of indecent assault on a boy aged between 11 and 15 on dates between 1975 and 1978. He was sentenced to 8 years imprisonment with the final four suspended by Judge Michael OShea at Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court on April 10 2014. His victim Cormac Walsh spoke of his delight outside the Court of Appeal today following Byrnes failed bid to apply for a review of his sentence. President of the Court of Appeal, Mr Justice Seán Ryan said Byrne was a secondary school teacher at the time of the offences. That was a matter of real significance which gave him a position of esteem and responsibility in his own community and authority over his young victim. He said the offending occurred in a number of different venues over the period of years he mentioned. It began with “what we know now as calculated grooming behaviour and progressed getting gradually more intrusive and gradually more offensive”, Mr Justice Ryan said. First there was touching or groping and that developed into circumstances where the accused masturbated the boy. This happened on a regular and frequent basis over the period of years, the judge said. It involved not just abuse of power and authority but deceit, Mr Justice Ryan said. The boy had had a medical condition for which he was being treated and the accused exploited this for his nefarious ends by saying he needed to get sperm samples to check the boy’s condition. Byrne pursued this policy over a long period of time giving credence to the deceit by actually collecting samples and it got worse. He told the boy that the quality of the sample would be better if the boy was more aroused, Mr Justice Ryan said. In sentencing Byrne, Judge Michael OShea said the abuse was cold, calculated, premeditated and he could only describe Byrnes conduct as that of a predator, Mr Justice Ryan said. Judge OShea had said it was “revolting, horrific, disgusting, embarrassing, and humiliating,” Mr Justice Ryan said. The court rejected arguments submitted by Byrnes counsel, Patrick Gageby SC, that this wasnt “the worst of crimes” and therefor should have started at a point lower than two years for each count. The individual acts taken as a whole and in context were legitimately viewed as being at the top of the scale, Mr Justice Ryan said. Having reached the total of 8 years imprisonment Judge OShea applied “a generous reduction of a full half of that period of time”, Mr Justice Ryan said. That seemed to the Court of Appeal to represent an allowance that adequately covered all the points that might be made in mitigation for Byrne. Mr Justice Ryan said it would have been perfectly proper for Judge OShea to take consecutive sentences into account and he did. It seemed the ultimate result would not have been different by the mode or method that he adopted. In the circumstances the court is not satisfied that there was any error in principle and the court consequently rejected Byrnes appeal. The court heard that Byrnes victim had confronted him and had obtained “substantial admissions” on video and audio. Mr Gageby had argued that the sentencing judge should have given more weight to these admissions. Speaking outside court Mr Walsh, who waived his right to anonymity, said he was “delighted” with the Court of Appeals decision to reject Byrnes appeal. He said three judge panel, consisting of Mr Justice Ryan, Ms Justice Mary Irvine and Mr Justice Michael Peart were “very fair” and their judgment was “correct”. Mr Walsh said: “its over now”. Mr Justice Ryan emphasised the victim impact report made by Mr Walsh. He said the sentencing court had “a most powerful exposition of the impact on the victim in this case and how, although making a very considerable success in his life, he had found himself in his mid-forties having a major crisis”. Mr Justice Ryan said it was “powerful, poignant and impressive”. It clearly impressed the learned Circuit Court Judge as it would have in any court.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 14:38:11 +0000
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