Teacher convicted of rape and sexual assault of relative struck off for minimum of 30 years

Seán McCárthaigh

A teacher who is serving a lengthy prison sentence for raping and sexually assaulting a relative has been struck off the Register of Teachers as a result of his criminal conviction.

An inquiry panel of the Teaching Council has also ruled that the man, who is in his early 40s, cannot apply to have his name restored to the register for at least 30 years because of the case’s “exceptional and disturbing features.”

The teacher’s identity cannot be published as a result of extensive reporting restrictions imposed by the three-person panel, which also prohibit disclosing the teacher’s home area, his relationship with his victim, the school where he taught and dates of his court appearances.

Announcing its decision, the chairperson of the inquiry panel, Fergal McCarthy, said they believed that “anything short of removal from the register would be incompatible with the profession of teacher.”

The inquiry heard the teacher is serving a prison sentence of 8½ years after being convicted of three counts of rape and four counts of sexual assault.

The offences occurred when the teacher was aged 14-18, and his victim was approximately four years younger.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges at his criminal trial and continues to maintain his innocence.

McCarthy said the nature of the teacher’s offences was the most relevant factor in their deliberations.

He noted they involved the rape and sexual assault of a minor, which placed them “at the most serious end of the spectrum.”

Although the teacher himself was young at the time, McCarthy said that did not excuse his conduct as he was in a position of relative power to his victim.

“The most important attribute for a teacher is that they can be trusted not to cause harm to children in their care or abuse their position of power,” he added.

McCarthy said the only mitigating factor was the time that had elapsed since the offences occurred, but he said it was “of minor import” when weighed against the seriousness of the teacher’s conduct.

Although it was the teacher’s right not to accept the verdict in his trial, McCarthy said a corollary of that is that he had shown no insight into his conduct.

He claimed aggravating factors in the case were the very serious nature of his crime, the abuse of trust and harm caused to a child as well as “deliberate and intended” conduct.

With regard to the need to protect the public, McCarthy said the panel believed there was “a serious risk of harm into the future.”

In deciding on the sanction, which needs to be formally ratified by the High Court, McCarthy said it was necessary to deter other teachers from engaging in similar conduct while also reassuring the public that teaching is a well-regulated profession.

Earlier, in a submission on sanction, counsel for the Teaching Council, Eoghan O’Sullivan BL, said rape was the most serious form of sexual offending, while the teacher’s victim was a child.

O’Sullivan said sexual offences were placed by society in a particular bracket, with their seriousness reinforced by convicted individuals being placed on a register of sex offenders.

The barrister said the fact that the teacher did not accept his conviction meant he had no insight or understanding of his conduct.

O’Sullivan said one of the aggravating factors in the case was the teacher’s “pattern of behaviour” which could not be considered an isolated incident.

Calling for the most serious sanction to be imposed on the teacher, O’Sullivan said the most important attribute for teachers was not academic ability but that they could be trusted to interact appropriately with children under their care and not to abuse their position of power.

Mr O’Sullivan reminded the inquiry panel that it was not their function to look behind the decision of the courts.

In response, the teacher took issue with the claim that he had no insight, which he said implied that he did not have the faculty to distinguish between right and wrong or to understand the process.

Attending the hearing remotely via videolink from Mountjoy Prison, the teacher said he maintained his innocence as the charges against him were “fabricated” and “did not happen.”

However, O’Sullivan replied that the lack of insight arose from his non-acceptance of the verdict.

He pointed out that there was consequently no insight into his conduct, which led to his conviction and subsequently the findings of the fitness-to-teach inquiry.

The inquiry previously heard that the teacher had told gardaí that the allegations against him were motivated by malice as he had informed other family members of the victim’s sexual orientation.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112.