Man (32) jailed for three months over violent attack on then girlfriend

A man who fractured his then girlfriend’s nose when he attacked her in her bed has been jailed for three months.

Adam Murphy (32) pleaded guilty in November at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assault at his apartment in Rathmines Town Centre, Rathmines, Dublin on July 3rd, 2015. He has no previous convictions.

The court heard that Murphy pinned Róisín Macken, now aged 31, to her bed during an argument and punched her a number of times in the face, causing her nose to bleed and leaving her with two black eyes.

Judge Melanie Greally said the court considered this to be a very serious assault committed in the context of a romantic relationship. She said there has been more than six years of severe emotional and psychological turmoil as a result of the offence itself and the length of time the case has taken.

Passing sentence on Thursday, Judge Greally noted that the assault has had “a profoundly damaging effect” on Ms Macken in virtually every facet of her life since.

She sentenced Murphy to 4½ months imprisonment, but suspended the final 1½ months on strict conditions, including that he follow all directions of the Probation Service for 12 months post release and attend any treatment programme for overcoming violent emotions as directed by his probation officer.

The judge also ordered that the €4,000 Murphy had with him in court be given to Women’s Aid.

Judge Greally noted that “for whatever reason” the case had been resolved by a plea to common assault, which carries a maximum sentence of six months.

Changed life forever

In her victim impact statement, which she read out in court, Ms Macken said there were days she struggled to get up and get dressed in the lead up to the trial. She said even now she worries about bumping into Murphy and avoids going places on her own.

Ms Macken said it was only thanks to her current boyfriend that she has been able to find happiness and security. She said the assault has changed her life forever and she hates that she is not the same person she was before she met Murphy. She said she feels like “a little dark cloud” will always follow her around.

The verbal and physical abuse she endured affected her physically, financially and mentally, Ms Macken said, and it still affects her to this day. She said she used to burst into tears when looking in the mirror because all she would see was a broken, crooked nose.

She said the stress she endured could have been avoided if Murphy had owned up to what he did initially. She said she does not think he will ever fully comprehend how much he damaged another person’s life as he was not the type of person to feel remorse.