This month will see judges participating in unique training aimed at better managing cases of sexual abuse. The one-day seminar has been executed by the Judicial Council’s judicial studies committee for all judges working on such cases in criminal courts. This training is one in a number of initiatives put in place since formal training for judges was first initiated in 2020. Plans for later this year encompass a seminar targeting judges who deal with child-involved cases, where children may be the accused party, defence, or witnesses.
Starting earlier this year, judges have attended informational visits across many of the country’s prisons, setup by the committee, which involved discussions with prison staff and governors. Before the adoption of an official training regimen, there was no formal training besides the option of a brief “shadowing” period with an experienced judge, which was determined by judge availability.
The Association of Judges of Ireland, which represents our nation’s judges, was among those who advocated for more structured training. In accordance with the Judicial Council Act 2019, the judicial studies committee was established in February 2020. This group, made up of judges from all five court jurisdictions, was developed with the intent of enhancing training, achieving judicial excellence, and maintaining public faith in the laws of the land.
Ever since the summer of 2020, every newly appointed judge has received ethical instruction and external professionals have given insight on “judgecraft” – tackling subjects like subconscious biases and how to improve the court experience for vulnerable witnesses.
All judges, upon their appointment, must consent to any subsequent training as directed by their court president. The seminar this month, focused on the management of sexual violence cases, has been orchestrated by Supreme Court judge Mr. Justice Peter Charleton – who has acted as the director of judicial studies since October 2023. The judge, a past prosecutor for the Director of Public Prosecutions, will be among the speakers at the seminar, providing insight from his experienced role in numerous high-profile criminal cases.
As an author, he’s penned numerous books on criminal law and sentencing verdicts, including those concerned with sexual crimes. He has served as a judge at the Central Criminal Court, during which he established sentencing ranges for rape convictions and participated in the development of sentencing guidelines for various criminal acts. In a landmark case at the Supreme Court in 2016, the jurist defined the legal understanding of consent within the realm of sexual offences.
Senior counsel, Kathleen Leader, who has acted on behalf of defendants in many sexually violent crime cases, will also deliver remarks during the seminar. The event will feature a firsthand account of the court system’s experience from the viewpoint of a victim of sexual violence.
Public backlash has periodically emerged over the way certain judges have managed sexual violence cases, particularly in terms of sentencing. However, there is a lack of sufficient data to support arguments of a recurrent pattern of lenient sentencing.
As per the most recent yearly report from the Courts Service, published for 2022, judges from the Central Criminal Court handed down 251 sentences for rape and attempted rape that year – 99 were full incarceration, 151 were partly suspended and one was entirely suspended.
Prison sentences typically surpassed five years. Specifically, it included 22 sentences between two and five years, 114 between five and 10 years, and 115 exceeding 10 years.
Concerning sexual crimes, 468 prison sentences were issued, 61 were partially suspended, and two were completely suspended. A dozen juvenile offenders under 18 years of age received detention orders served in juvenile detention centres.
Breakdown of imposed sexual offence sentences are as follows: 75 sentences were for up to two years, 249 for periods of between two and five years, 196 for periods between five and 10 years, and 11 for over 10 years.
Of 948 sexual crimes processed by the Circuit Courts, outcomes were as follows: 408 led to imprisonment, 255 resulted in bonds posted by offenders, 90 concluding with suspended sentences, 30 with probation orders, 89 co-considered with other crimes and 76 managed through other methods.