Anthony Hussey, 24, has had his bail revoked, and was remanded in custody, today, in the Central Criminal Court, Dublin. In a pre-sentence hearing before Justice Patrick McCarthy, the Garda presented evidence showing that Hussey, who had been drinking heavily, had broken into the home of an elderly 74 year old woman, removed her trousers and sexually assualted her. He admitted raping her twice during the terrifying assault.
Hussey, who presented a letter of apology, blaming the incident on his heavy drinking, admitted blame after initial pleading his innocence to the Garda. DNA found on the women’s clothing was later matched to Hussey, who then, under questioning, admitted his guilt.
The elderly pensioner, whose name is being witheld for legal and health reasons, suffered incredible trauma, debilitating psychological injury and is under ongoing treatment. A victim impact statement, read to the court on her behalf, states that the damage will be “most probably permanent”.
Hussey, of Ardshillane, Sneem, has been placed on the Sex Offenders Register and his bail has been. revoked. He has been remanded, in custody, for sentencing on June 7th.
The question for the reader, of course, is whether or not someone who commits such gross sexual crimes should ever be released. Community expectations play a major role in Justice McCarthy’s sentencing guidelines, I know. But the law, as such, does allow for a sentence to defined to an exact amount of time. Some in the community, myself included, would favour “never to be released”. We will, however, have to wait until June 7th to find out if this is the case.