Child rape cases are still 'in flux', judge declares
Friday June 30 2006
They included the case of Mr C, the man who successfully challenged the constitutionality of the statutory rape legislation in the Supreme Court.
Judge Katherine Delahunt agreed to adjourn six cases of statutory rape of girls aged under 15 and girls between 15 and 17, until October 31.
One of the defence counsel, Marie Torrens, challenged the Circuit Court's jurisdiction in these cases, given the Supreme Court ruling.
The ruling found that section 1.1 of the 1935 Criminal Law Amendment Act was unconstitutional in the Mr C case - which led to the release and later the re-incarceration of Mr A.
Judge Delahunt agreed to an application on behalf of the DPP to adjourn the Mr C case and five other unlawful carnal knowledge cases for mention later this year, saying the matter is "in general somewhat in flux".
Adjourned
Prosecutor Des Zaidan had asked that the Mr C case be adjourned so that the Supreme Court's written judgment in the related Mr A case could be delivered and considered by the DPP.
Ms Torrens replied that it was "quite clear" that the unconstitutionality of section 1.1 of the 1935 act had been decided by the Supreme Court in the Mr C case, and that the Mr A case had then arisen in relation to unlawful detention.
Judge Mary Laffoy had released Mr A and the Supreme Court had then overturned that decision. However, she said one of her clients had not pleaded guilty and would have relied on the defence of "honest mistake" as to age - which the first Supreme Court ruling allowed.
Liberty
Five other cases in which people face charges under section 1.1 of the acst were also adjourned for mention by Judge Delahunt following a similar application on behalf of the DPP.
Ms Torrens, who appears in two of the six cases, said that another of her clients was no longer abiding by signing-on conditions attached to his bail, as it interfered with his liberty.
Lisa Dempsey, counsel for the DPP in that case, told Judge Delahunt that the investigating garda wanted the accused to sign on. She said the alleged injured party lived in the vicinity of the accused and the conditions allowed the situation to be monitored.
Ms Torrens, who earlier said she would take the Mr C case adjournment "elsewhere", repeated that she was not accepting the Circuit Criminal Court's jurisdiction in the second case and would go to the High Court on it.
