A FORMER PRIEST who violently sexually abused a young woman as he drove her to the Rape Crisis Centre for counselling has been jailed after his fully suspended sentence was overturned by the Court of Appeal.

In March 2023 at the Central Criminal Court, Joe Dunne (82) was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment, wholly suspended, by Mr Justice Paul McDermott after he pleaded guilty to five counts of indecently assaulting a young woman on dates between January and December 1989 when she was already “extremely vulnerable” and when he was a priest.

The woman told the trial of how meeting Dunne when she was a young woman who already suffered abuse at the hands of another individual began “34 years of hell” for her. The woman, in her victim impact statement, said she thought she would be safe because Dunne was a priest when she told him of the previous abuse.

At the time of his guilty pleas, Dunne of Ballycrystal, Geashill, Co Offaly, had no previous convictions.

At the Court of Appeal today, Mr Justice John Edwards said the trial judge exhibited “considerable mercy and compassion” towards Dunne and his sister, for whom he is the sole carer, who would be “unquestionably impacted” if Dunne was to be jailed.

However, Mr Justice Edwards said the “violence” of the sexual offences were “terrifying” for the woman, had long-lasting effects on her and merited a custodial sentence.

Mr Edwards said for a trial judge to feel the need to show “appropriate mercy and compassion” in sentencing an offender was “a good thing and commendable” but that this mercy and compassion must be at an appropriate level and not one that “undermines primary sentencing objectives”.

“A sentence to be imposed should be proportionate both to the gravity of the offending and to the circumstances of the offender,” said Mr Justice Edwards.

Mr Justice Edwards noted that Dunne indecently assaulted the previously abused young woman on a number of occasions after befriending her in hospital. Dunne later asked her for forgiveness but then assaulted her again, something the trial judge described as “shocking” behaviour.

Mr Justice Edwards said Dunne “cynically exploited the victim’s damaged state and vulnerability”.

“The victim was already damaged by virtue of having been previously sexually abused – this was known to the respondent,” said Mr Justice Edwards.

The judge said that Dunne’s subsequent “purported apology” to the victim over his behaviour towards her before abusing her again amounted to “weasel words”.

“He exploited his chaplaincy role to secure an opportunity to abuse his victim. This was not one-off offending either,” said Mr Justice Edwards.

Mr Justice Edwards said that while there was nothing penetrative in the abuse, the victim’s breasts and genitals were touched and felt “in the most intimate of ways” and that he had ejaculated during one assault.

Mr Justice Edwards said the abuse happened in “remote and secluded locations” and occurred with “considerable violence that must have been utterly terrifying for the victim”.

Mr Justice Edwards said the three-judge court was satisfied that the case merited a custodial sentence “notwithstanding his great age, his medical difficulties and the dependency upon him of his even more elderly sister”.

Mr Justice Edwards said it was “not proper and appropriate” to wholly suspend the sentence.

In re-sentencing Dunne, Mr Justice Edwards said a headline sentence of six years was appropriate and discounted two years to reflect the guilty pleas and Dunne’s personal circumstances.

In taking Dunne’s elderly sister’s circumstances into account, Mr Justice Edwards said he would suspend a further two years of the sentence for two years, leaving him with a two-year jail term to be served.

The Central Criminal Court heard the case had come to light as a result of a separate investigation in 2019 when gardaí came across letters the injured party had written to her bishop about Dunne years earlier. Gardaí then approached the woman who told them what had occurred.

Trial judge Mr Justice Paul McDermott commended the courage of the woman and noted the “devastating” effects of the abuse on the injured party.

Mr Justice McDermott said the circumstances of the case were “extremely aggravating” and noted Dunne had got himself into a position where he could sexually assault an abused woman. “That’s shocking,” said the judge.

He said it was clear from the nature of the assaults that they were carried out on a young woman in a most vulnerable position and who Dunne knew to be in a vulnerable position after she turned to him for support at a difficult time.

He said he was obliged to take Dunne’s guilty plea into account but said it appeared from some material presented to court that he does not have full appreciation of the damage done.

The judge also took into account Dunne’s age and his health issues in setting a sentence of four years imprisonment.

He said he also had to take into account the effect imprisoning Dunne would have on his 94-year-old sister for whom Dunne is the sole carer. He said the report before him in that regard was “stark”. He said the woman would be in very serious circumstances if deprived of his support.

He said the court was faced with a dilemma and he took the “unusual and exceptional step” of suspending the entire sentence because of the disproportionate effect it would have on Dunne’s sister.

The judge said this was not something easily done on his part but said it seemed to him it would involve a significant penalty on a third party if Dunne served the sentence.

Garda Darren Hughes had told Conor Devally SC, prosecuting, that the woman had previously been abused by another person and spent some time in hospital as she found it difficult to get over it.

Dunne befriended her in the hospital while aware she was highly vulnerable.

She was due to attend counselling which was difficult for her to access due to her rural location and Dunne offered to drive her to the Rape Crisis Centre. During several trips to the Rape Crisis Centre, Dunne indecently assaulted her.

The young woman was shocked and thought no one would believe this behaviour of a priest so found it hard to reveal what was happening to her. She eventually prevailed on her family to keep Dunne away and made alternative arrangements.

Dunne later approached the young woman and sought her forgiveness. She felt she had no choice but to forgive him and that it would be a sin not to do so. He prevailed on her to take a trip with him and again assaulted her in the car.

Dunne emigrated for some time and was in ministry in Scotland but the woman observed on his return that he was filling in to say masses and funerals so at this stage she wrote to her bishop.

The court heard “little or nothing” was done at that stage to make Dunne “amenable to the law.”

Dunne was arrested and interviewed during the later investigation after her letters came to light in 2019.

Dunne, who has been removed from ministry, made limited admissions at that stage, but entered a guilty plea to the indecent assaults prior to his trial date.

In her victim impact statement, the woman said that meeting Dunne had started 34 years of hell. She said she had felt she would be safe with him as he was a priest.

She outlined the devastating effects the abuse has had on her life in relation to relationships, her mental health and employment. She feels she will grow old on her own as she cannot trust anyone.

“I hope he will understand how he destroyed me,” she told the court in her statement.