This article is from page 16 of the 2012-11-06 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 16 JPG
A MAN alleged to have sexually assaulted a woman in his car during a Valentine’s Day journey last year has had the charge against him dismissed.
The man, with an address in Clare, had been accused of assaulting the woman who was a passenger in his car on a country road of the main N18 between Ennis and Limerick on February 14 (2011).
The man denied the charge, saying that what he happened between them was consensual.
At the end of a near five hour hearing, Judge Aeneas McCarthy said that he had to be satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that the woman did not consent to the overall activity.
He said, “I have a doubt and I have to give that doubt to the accused, accordingly I dismiss.” Details of the case were heard during an in-camera sitting of Ennis District Court on Tuesday.
The court heard that the woman travelled to Limerick and back in the defendant’s car.
She said that on the journey back, the driver told her she was a “stunning looking woman.” She said that he kissed her and put his hand up her top.
She said, “I was in dread of my life. I was never in a situation like this before in my life.”
The woman, who is in her forties, said that just before they arrived back in Shannon, the driver pulled off the main road.
She alleged that the man started “mauling” her when the car stopped. “He was doing his best to get into my pants,” she added.
The woman said she resisted his efforts and told him she would meet him the following week as a way of stopping the ordeal.
The woman, who cried during her evidence, said, “I thought he was going to kill me down there.”
Asked about the effect the incident has had on her life, the woman said, “This has turned my whole life upside down.
“I’m not the same person I was. My marriage is nearly over.” The court heard that moments after being dropped back to her car, the woman phoned her boss and her husband to tell them what happened.
Defence solicitor Patrick Moylan put it to the woman that her evidence in court was “completely at odds” to the statement she had made to gardaí at the time.
He said what had between both parties was consensual.
The parties did not know each other before meeting on the day, the court heard.
The man, who is in his fifties, told the court that the conversation between the pair had “got very flirty” on the journey back to Clare. He said they had shown each other “saucy” text messages and ringtones. The man said they held hands.
He admitted kissing the woman and putting his hand on her breast. “I assumed everything was consensual at that stage,” he added. He said, “She wasn’t terrified. She was laughing and joking all the way.”
Garda Donna Egan of Shannon Garda Station said the woman was “extremely distressed” when she spoke to gardaí.
The man was subsequently interviewed by gardaí. He said he asked the woman’s permission before kissing her.
He told gardaí that he hadn’t stopped on the N18 because someone he knew could have seen him.
Under cross examination from Mr Moylan, Garda Egan said there were some variances in the woman’s evidence in court and her original statement to gardaí. Inspector Tom Kennedy said the State conceded that there were “inconsistencies” in the woman’s evidence.
Mr Moylan said, “This is a case of consent.”
Judge McCarthy said it was “very evident” that there was some sort of sexual activity between these two individuals.
He said it was for him to decide if what had happened had been consensual. He dismissed the charge.