Man who subjected wife to 12-year 'campaign of terror' jailed for one year
Eimar Dodd
A man who pushed his wife’s face into a hot place of food during a 12-year “campaign of terror” has been jailed for one year.
The man went on trial at the Central Criminal Court earlier this year on counts including rape, coercive control and assault causing harm.
Following discussions, a nolle prosequi was entered in relation to the rape charge, meaning it was dropped. The man then entered a guilty plea to a count of assault causing harm on a date in 2010, and one of coercive control on dates between January 2019 and November 2020.
He has no previous convictions. He can't be named due to legal reasons.
The court heard evidence that the couple began a relationship in 2009, and while things were initially fine, the man became possessive and accused the woman of being interested in other men.
They moved in together and married in 2015. Evidence was heard that there were frequent arguments and the man was verbally and physically abusive towards the woman. This included calling her names, putting her into a headlock and ripping her clothes.
On one occasion in 2010, he pushed a hot plate of food into her face, leaving her with burns.
He also monitored her spending and her eating, threatened suicide if she left him, and towards the end of their relationship, started an affair with another woman. The man put turf in his wife's bed and removed parts of the shower so she could not wash.
Reading her victim impact statement during an earlier hearing, the woman said she lived a “waking nightmare” for 12 years.
She said the man’s actions were “calculated” and “cruel”. She asked the court to consider that the “campaign of terror” inflicted on her lasted over a decade and has caused intergenerational harm.
She said the man’s actions will stay with her and their children for the rest of their lives and asked the court to send a message that the “depravity of coercive control in relationships is unacceptable”.
Imposing sentence on Monday, Mr Justice Tony Hunt said this was a “very sad case”, noting that the offences occurred a decade apart and “bookend” the couple's relationship.
He said that while the count of assault causing harm refers to a specific incident in 2010, it appeared that the woman “was subjected to a campaign of physical and mental abuse over a very prolonged period”.
The judge said the duration of the couple's relationship was a “testament to the woman's optimism”, and her hope that there might be a positive change in the man's behaviour, even if in hindsight, she “may not consider that wise”.
He noted the “irony” of the man's “fits of paranoia and jealousy” about the woman cheating on him when he “found comfort elsewhere” towards the end of their relationship.
“His wife was expected to understand and put up with it,” the judge said, describing it as “unedifying behaviour”.
Mr Justice Hunt said he took into account the mitigation, including that the man has no previous convictions. But, the judge noted that in general, domestic violence offences have an “uncomfortable resonance” with sexual offences where an offender has no previous convictions.
The judge said he is “beginning to think” an absence of previous convictions “carry less weight” as “people who commit serious sexual offences are frequently people who behave in an exemplary fashion in other parts of their lives”.
He said he could not agree with the defence submission to impose a fully suspended sentence, adding that it appears that a custodial sentence is “now normal rather than exceptional” for cases of violence in a domestic context.
The judge imposed a global sentence of three years, with the final two years suspended for three years on strict conditions.
In her victim impact statement, the woman said her sense of self and freedom was broken down, and she was isolated from friends and family.
She said the man had “no problem telling me how absolute his power was” and showed her where he intended to bury her if he killed her, the tools he’d use and the lime.
“He made me feel like a prisoner in my own home, in my own body…I wasn’t seen as human being, but as something he owned”.
John Byrne SC, defending, submitted that there was “pettiness” on both sides, which escalated after his client’s affair came to light in 2020. He said his client accepts wrongdoing, but not to the extent outlined in the victim impact statement.
A probation report places the man at high risk of re-offending, but Mr Byrne noted the Probation Service is willing to work with the man.
Defence counsel asked the court to consider that the end of any relationship is complex and that there were also good times in this marriage. Counsel noted that while his client accepts “significant” wrongdoing, he does not accept full responsibility for the end of the relationship.
The man also denied any sexual wrongdoing at all times, the court heard. Mr Byrne asked the court to consider imposing a non-custodial sentence, noting some of this offending occurred in the early 2010s and the steps taken by the man to address his mental health issues.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can contact Women’s Aid (24-hour freephone helpline at 1800-341 900, email helpline@womensaid.ie) or Men’s Aid Ireland (confidential helpline at 01-554 3811, email hello@mensaid.ie) for support and information.
Safe Ireland also offers a number of local services and helplines at safeireland.ie/get-help/where-to-find-help/. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.
