A teenager who took part in the gang-rape of a 12-year-old girl in a field has been given six years' detention by Mr Justice Carney at the Central Criminal Court.
Paul Campbell (17), of Moore field Estate, Clondalkin, Co Dublin, pleaded guilty to raping the girl and to sexually assaulting a second girl on dates from September 2nd to September 13th, 1996.
Garda Brenda Hyland-Byrne told Mr Feargal Kavanagh, prosecuting, that the girls were dragged across fields near their home by Campbell and others after declining to go with the youths.
The victim was raped three times by three culprits. Each raped her in turn while the other two held her down. The court heard Campbell had just turned 15 at the time. He then bragged about his actions in school and taunted the victim and her mother in local shops.
Her father said his daughter woke up screaming at night and had uncontrollable crying bouts over two years later. She still felt it was all her fault, and counselling had been unfruitful.
The mother of Campbell's sexual assault victim revealed her daughter had tried to commit suicide through a tablet overdose in 1997. She was still receiving private counselling, but her life had been turned upside down.
Mr Justice Carney said that among the aggravating factors was that Campbell and his co-accused bragged about their crimes. Victims in these cases were entitled to anonymity, but "these young thugs boasted all over the school about what had happened". The victims had been extremely traumatised.
Mr Justice Carney said he had no doubt the victims and their families would think that any sentence was too lenient, but in view of Campbell's age he believed the sentence was quite severe.