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DPP choice of rape charge halts 'unfair' trial

The suprene court has halted the trial of a young man on a charge of raping a 16-year-old girl in a van in Wexford town.

The three-judge court ruled yesterday it was “palpably unfair” for the DPP to substitute, without any new evidence, the much more serious rape charge for a previous charge of attempted unlawful carnal knowledge.

The DPP had abandoned the prosecution on the lesser charge after the Supreme Court struck down the relevant law as unconstitutional.

Rape carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment while the maximum sentence for attempted unlawful carnal knowledge was two years, Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns noted.

What the DPP had done was akin to a person being initially charged with driving through a red light and then replacing that charge with one alleging dangerous driving causing death.

Giving the Supreme Court judgment overturning the High Court’s refusal to stop the man’s trial, Mr Justice Kearns said the case arose on the night of February 21, 2003, when the man and girl, who were slightly acquainted and then aged 20 and 16 respectively, happened to meet outside a disco.

By Vivion Kilfeather, Irish Examiner

More story at-http://www.irishexaminer.ie/irishexaminer/pages/story.aspx-qqqg=ireland-qqqm=ireland-qqqa=ireland-qqqid=76181-qqqx=1.asp

© Examiner Publications (Cork) Limited

 
 

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