A RETIRED school teacher succeeded yesterday in overturning his conviction for sexually abusing a former pupil over 40 years ago.
The Court of Criminal Appeal quashed the man’s conviction for 10 counts of indecent assault, and said it was not directing a retrial as the man had served the sentence imposed on him.
In May 2009, the man, who is in his 60s, was jailed for 18 months after a jury at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court found him guilty of indecently assaulting a child at a primary school.
The boy was aged between seven and 10-years-old when the abuse was alleged to have taken place between July 1966 and June 1970. It was claimed the assaults occurred “in the public arena of the classroom” while the victim was in first, second and fourth class.
Yesterday’s appeal heard arguments from lawyers representing the man who said their client’s three-day trial should have been “halted” when difficulties emerged with the testimony of a person, alleged to have “viewed the activity” complained of.
This testimony was put forward by the prosecution as “collaborate evidence” but it had “a toxic effect”, as “significant differences” emerged between this person’s account of alleged events and that of the complainant’s.
“Who was in what class”, at the time the alleged offences occurred was also “crucial” the court heard.
Paul McDermott SC, for the man, said “it turned out” the “witness” was in an “alternative first and second class” and went through fourth class in the main building and not in a prefabricated building where the complainant claimed the abuse took place.