A retired Irish Defense Force member has been jailed for 10 years for sexually abusing his young daughter almost 20 years ago.
Gerald Lawless, 61, pleaded guilty to four counts of oral rape and seven counts of sexual assault between 1991 and 1998 at his family's then Dublin home.
Daniel Lawless, of Elmdale Crescent, Ballyfermot, Dublin 10, waived his right to anonymity to allow the name of his father to be published.
In a powerful victim impact statement, Ms Lawless said her father was not only the perpetrator of these “heinous acts” but also the person who should have protected and cared for her.
She said he “abused my innocence and trust in the most despicable way.”
Lawless said her father “manipulated my understanding of love and affection,” and explained how this affected her ability to trust others and her own decisions.
She said she experienced shame, guilt and feelings of worthlessness, and spoke of her “unwavering determination” to protect her children from “the horrors I endured.”
The Central Criminal Court heard that the first sexual assault incident occurred when Ms Lawless was around five years old and she had gone to her parents' room to play and cuddle.
The crime did not continue during the period. The court found that most of the charges of sexual assault and oral rape were sample charges, referring primarily to a 17-month period between October 1995 and April 1997, when the victim was approximately 10 years old. Stated.
The last two sexual assaults occurred between November 1997 and August 1998, at unknown dates, when Lawless was approximately 12 years old.
Lawless was scheduled to go to trial in December, but his plea was accepted by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
He joined the Defense Forces in 1980 and served overseas, including in Lebanon. He retired for health reasons in 2013 and his health is in poor condition, the court heard. Mr Lawless has no previous convictions and has been in custody since making the allegations in December last year.
After hearing the facts on Thursday, Judge Paul McDermott adjourned the case overnight to consider the sentence.
On Friday, he sentenced Lawless to 10 years in prison worldwide, and ordered him to undergo three years of post-release supervision and have no direct or indirect contact with the victim.
Justice McDermott said that the sexual abuse continued and escalated throughout the victim's childhood, and that the fact that the abuse was “interrupted” did not in fact “detract from its egregious nature, and that the victim had control over her childhood.” There was no evidence that he had done so.”
He pointed to the serious and long-lasting effects of the abuse, as outlined in a victim impact statement, and said Mr Lawless had been “in fact trained from a very young age and in fact his It was incorporated into the world of play, and in the end it became like this.'' Confused emotions throughout her childhood. ”
Judge McDermott said responsibility and shame were “not in front of her”.
“It’s there, fully and completely, beyond the doors of Lawless.”
He said it was upsetting that “his father's trust” had been violated and that the abuse took place in the family home.
Judge McDermott said he was considering mitigating factors, including Mr Lawless's service in the Defense Forces and his poor health, which would make his time in prison a more difficult experience.
He said a probation report showed Lawless held a “very distorted view” of what happened and, although regret was expressed, he did not believe the victim would be “severely harmed.” The court stated that it was concerned that the statement read, “We do not understand what happened.”
Judge McDermott said a period of post-release supervision was appropriate because Lawless was “not actually addressing his criminal activity” and he should be assessed for a relevant treatment program.
Investigators told Gerald Clark SC, prosecuting, that Mr Lawless was the victim's adoptive father and had married her mother when she was young.
She outlined that the abuse included inappropriate touching, masturbation and oral sex. All but the first incident occurred while the victim's mother was at work.
The abuse ended when the victim was 12 years old. Her father told her that what they were doing was wrong and that she should keep it a secret.
Ms Lawless told her mother about the abuse in 2018 before making a complaint to gardaí. Her mother and Ms Lawless had separated in 2013, the court heard.
Lawless was voluntarily interviewed by gardaí in 2019 and made some admissions. However, he told gardaí the abuse took place over several days when the victim was 10 years old.
Investigating officers Catherine Noctar SC defended the case, saying there was only one conversation in which Lawless told the victim to keep the abuse a secret, and that happened after the crime was over.
She acknowledged that Lawless had made a partial confession during the interview, but noted that he did not acknowledge the time frame of the actual offending and felt that gardaí had engaged in “a degree of disrespect”. .
Lawless also agreed during interrogation that he admitted to having an inappropriate relationship with the victim and apologized, although he did not remember some details.
Witnesses also agreed that Ms Lawless' guilty plea, although not early, was given before the trial began, meaning the victim did not have to give evidence.
The court heard Lawless told a probation officer that his actions towards the victim had “no malicious intent” and that he had “never forced” her to have sex. I was disappointed. He said, “I loved her, and I know it was wrong,'' and continued, “I loved her, and she returned that love to me.'' It was given to me,” he said.
He added: “I loved her as a daughter. Not in a sexual way.”
Ms Noctar said Mr Lawless' instruction to the probation officer was “a mistake” when he told her the abuse only took place over a short period of time. She was told that when Lawless referred to her love in this conversation, he meant that he “loved the victim as a daughter.”
She said her client had fully accepted his guilt for the offense and was assessed to be at low to moderate risk of reoffending.
Mr Noctor told the court his client had a number of health problems and was now a wheelchair user.
Numerous reports and testimonies were submitted to the court. Lawless continues to receive support from some of his brothers. Ms Noctor asked the court to consider her client's history of childhood adversity, his guilty plea and his expressions of remorse.
The court heard that Ms Lawless had not worked since leaving the Defense Force due to health problems, but had volunteered for organizations including St Patrick's Athletic.
