Man sentenced to 14.5 years in jail for coercive management, rape and assault on his companion

An Offaly man convicted of controlling, raping, assaulting and unfairly imprisoning his former companion has been sentenced to 14 and a half years in jail.

Lisa O’Meara, who waived her anonymity so her rapist Barry Murphy might be named, informed the Central Prison Courtroom in her sufferer affect assertion she was unsure if she was extra haunted by what she remembered or by what she had hidden.

“I’m happy with myself for being right here,” she informed the court docket. “You thought you had been untouchable and that I’d ceaselessly be underneath your management,” she stated, telling Murphy that she now seemed ahead to a contented and vivid future.

The court docket heard the entrance door to the couple’s dwelling was “locked” and Ms O’Meara had no technique of communication with the surface world earlier than fleeing to an acquaintance’s home .

Ms O’Meara ran away from dwelling the evening after the ultimate rape and sexual assault. She waited for Murphy to go to sleep earlier than she managed to get out of the home and flee in a taxi.

Murphy (39) of Grogan, Ballycumber, Co Offaly, was discovered responsible by a jury at a trial in Tullamore earlier this yr of three counts of raping Ms O’Meara between February 8, 2018 and on February 24, 2020.

He was additionally discovered responsible of coercive management over her over an 18-month interval between January 1, 2019 and July 4, 2020.

He was additional convicted of 1 depend of sexual assault in 2020, three counts of assault inflicting hurt in 2018, 2019 and 2020 and one depend of false imprisonment in 2020. He was acquitted of one other depend of false imprisonment.

The offenses occurred in County Offaly, except for one of many assaults dedicated overseas on a public vacation.

He has already been convicted a number of instances for street visitors and public order offences.

Timothy O’Leary SC, prosecuting, confirmed that Ms O’Meara wished to waive her anonymity.

The Guard is frightened

Passing sentence on Monday, Decide Kerida Naidoo famous that gardaí had been involved about Ms O’Meara’s whereabouts and had been actively looking for her on the time.

He famous {that a} guard had the “admirable skilled acumen” to file certainly one of Ms O’Meara’s grievance statements, fearing she would attempt to withdraw it later.

Decide Naidoo stated the Garda had been “vindicated” as Ms O’Meara later tried to withdraw her grievance and the video of her assertion was performed to the jury in the course of the trial.

The choose acknowledged from the sufferer’s assertion that she felt nugatory and had no confidence. He famous that she stated she discovered herself “preventing each day to heal” and that she felt Murphy “took my id away, little by little.”

Decide Naidoo stated the three rapes and sexual assaults occurred “for all intents and functions, whereas Ms O’Meara was a hostage in the home”.

“He exercised a major degree of management over his varied actions, together with over his relationships along with his pals,” stated the choose earlier than additionally considering that the offenses concerned violence and that these fell throughout the framework of a relationship.

He stated Murphy restricted Ms O’Meara’s “actions and freedom” and this was accomplished over a two-year interval within the context of ongoing conduct which amounted to coercive management.

Title sentence

Decide Naidoo imposed a sentence of 17 years in jail for the rape offence.

He stated the coercive management offense deserved an total sentence of 4 years, whereas the assault offenses deserved common sentences of between three and a half and 5 years.

He stated false imprisonment deserved a six-year sentence, whereas he gave the sexual assault offenses a five-and-a-half yr sentence.

Decide Naidoo stated in mitigation Murphy had not pleaded responsible, didn’t settle for the jury’s verdict and had proven no regret.

He acknowledged court docket testimony that described Murphy as a great father and a profitable businessman who supplies jobs to the realm.

Decide Naidoo imposed an total sentence of 15 and a half years after saying all sentences would run concurrently. He suspended the ultimate yr of the time period underneath strict situations.

Accidents

An investigating garda informed Mr O’Leary that the offenses referring to rape, sexual assault and bodily assault occurred over a two-year interval between 2018 and February 2020. Ms O’Meara suffered accidents corresponding to a fractured eye socket and a damaged nostril.

Gardai had known as to the home in January 2020 after receiving stories of issues for his security. The entrances to the home and its enterprise had been blocked and Gardai sought entry to the home to see if Ms O’Meara was current.

Unbeknownst to the gardai, Ms O’Meara was taken from the again of the home and throughout fields to a street the place Murphy took her from the scene in a automobile. It took 24 hours for them to be situated, which Gardaí did by triangulating the situation of Murphy’s cellphone.

Ms O’Meara was discovered within the automobile with critical bodily accidents.

Gardai took a press release from Ms O’Meara after she escaped from the home in February 2020, which was recorded on video.

The Garda informed the court docket she turned conscious she had returned to the connection for a while and was involved for her security. She then went to the Garda twice and requested that her grievance be withdrawn.

On certainly one of these events she was pushed there by Murphy.

Murphy’s bail was revoked as a result of Ms O’Meara residing with him was a breach of his situations.

Coercive management

Through the coercive management listening to, which continued till July 2020, Ms O’Meara informed gardaí she had no management over her life and couldn’t go away the home. She stated Murphy would lock the again door and take the important thing. She stated he was very possessive and she or he was afraid of him.

Through the trial, Ms O’Meara stated she didn’t keep in mind the occasions and her video-recorded statements to Gardaí had been performed to the jury.

In her sufferer affect assertion earlier this yr, Ms O’Meara informed the court docket that earlier than 2018 she was a contented, carefree younger girl with an ideal life. She stated that after that, her life modified drastically within the worst approach by the hands of Murphy.

She stated she began out head over heels in love, however Murphy took management of her life and broke it piece by piece till she felt nugatory and trustless.

She stated she misplaced her pals and her household wished her to depart. She stated she cherished him however was additionally frightened of him.

She defined how she suffered emotional, bodily and sexual abuse and was made to really feel loopy and insecure due to her regular reactions to what was taking place.

“I can’t put into phrases what I went via,” Ms O’Meara stated, “It fully destroyed me.”

She stated she retains questioning why he would do that to her if he actually loves her, however she is aware of she’ll by no means get the actual reply. “The life I imagined for myself is totally shattered,” she stated.

Ms O’Meara stated she was fully traumatized and suffered from flashbacks and PTSD. She informed the court docket how the abuse continues to have a detrimental affect on her each day life.

She stated she is working exhausting to rebuild herself and her kids are retaining her alive.

Mr O’Leary stated the DPP had indicated this case fell into the best class, with a sentencing vary of between 15 years and life imprisonment. In keeping with him, this was “not often accomplished”.

John Peart SC, defending, stated Murphy doesn’t settle for the jury’s verdict and his consumer doesn’t imagine he’s responsible. He stated it was an inner scenario that bought uncontrolled.

He stated Murphy was a person who ran his personal articulated trucking enterprise and an auto restore enterprise with a big yard. He gave quite a few testimonies.

The barrister stated of the truth that the door was “riveted shut” that it was in reality screwed shut and that this was the results of a breach throughout a earlier Garda search. He defined that in consequence, the again door was generally used.

He argued in court docket that these offenses don’t fall into the best class.

Ms O’Meara speaks in court docket

Ms O’Meara spoke within the felony courts on Monday following the jailing of her former companion Barry Murphy for rape, assault, false imprisonment and coercive management.

Murphy (39) of Grogan, Ballycumber, Co Offaly, was discovered responsible by a jury at a trial held in Tullamore, Co Offaly earlier this yr.

Ms O’Meara stated: “I am comfortable to have gotten justice for myself, it is the perfect factor to return out of a horrible scenario.”

“And I hope that girls in the same scenario make the most of this to have the ability to get out of a nasty relationship, an abusive relationship and get justice for themselves.”

“Don’t be afraid. Go away, you need to go away, do not stay, as a result of it would not get higher. It is getting worse and worse. I simply say to all girls: do not be afraid, communicate up. »

Ms O’Meara stated she was “happy that justice has been accomplished”.

“I’ve been silenced for too lengthy.”

When you’ve got been affected by any of the problems raised on this article, you may name the 24-hour nationwide rape hotline on 1800-77 8888, entry the textual content service and chat choices by on-line at drcc.ie/providers/helpline/ or go to Rape. Assist in case of disaster.

When you’ve got been affected by any of the problems raised on this article, you may contact Girls’s Support (Toll-free 24-hour helpline 1800-341 900, electronic mail helpline@womensaid.ie) Or Males’s Support Eire (confidential helpline 01-554 3811, electronic mail whats up@mensaid.ie) for help and data.

Secure Eire additionally provides quite a lot of native providers and helplines safeireland.ie/get-help/where-to-find-help/. In case of emergency, all the time dial 999/112.