Irish woman abused by brother criticises sentencing

Miriam says the justice system is failing survivors

A woman, whose brother avoided jail after being convicted of sexually abusing her, says suspended sentences deter victims from coming forward.

Gerald Henry of Lixnaw, County Kerry, was found guilty on 9 July of habitually sexually abusing Miriam and her sister Irene when they were children and Gerald was a teenager.

They have both waived their legal right to anonymity.

Henry received an 18-month sentence, suspended for three years. He maintains that he is not guilty of the crime and expressed no remorse or regret.

Miriam Henry, who first made her complaint in 2018, says the justice system is failing survivors.

'Silent victims'

“I wasn't surprised, because we see the sentencing that happens in this country,” she says.

“But at the same time when I had heard that there was no expression of regret or remorse, I was thinking maybe he'll get an actual sentence that he'll have to serve.”

Miriam says that such sentences add to the myriad of reasons sex abuse survivors do not come forward.

“This is the reason why people don't report," she says.

Since going public on social media about her case, she says she has received hundreds of messages from all over Ireland from people who said they did not report their own abuse due to the Irish legal system.

“These are silent victims. There's no stats including them.”

During his trial, Gerald Henry had two character references, from his wife and his father-in-law.

Both were read out after Miriam’s victim impact statement, something she says was traumatic.

“You give your victim impact statement, your most private thoughts that you've had your whole life about this abuse, and it's very emotional," she says.

"It's very upsetting," she adds.

“It's also kind of liberating, because like you're saying all the things that you've probably only ever discussed in therapy.

“Then this barrister stands up and reads out glowing praise of your abuser.”

As of 18 July, people who give character references for sexual offenders can now be cross-examined in court, this however, was too late for Miriam.

Cathal Crotty

Suspended sentences have come under increasing spotlight in Ireland in recent months, after the high profile case of Cathal Crotty.

He is an Irish soldier who received a suspended sentence in June, after beating a woman in Limerick in 2022.

The case sparked further reporting of other suspended sentences for violent crimes against women.

“Something needs to be done about suspended sentences because that's what's causing the low rate of reporting,” Miriam said.

Opposition politicians including Sinn Féin's Mary Lou McDonald and Social Democrat leader Holly Cairns, who have both gone public about their experiences of being threatened and stalked, respectively, have called on a “zero tolerance approach” to gender based violence.