GAA referee jailed for indecent assault of niece

A former GAA referee has been sentenced to six years and nine months in prison for indecently assaulting his niece when she was a child.

Maeve Leahy, who waived her right to anonymity to name her uncle-in-law, Thomas Howard, said she was pleased with the sentence handed down at Portlaoise Circuit Court today.

She said she will be able to carry on with her life after getting justice.

At an earlier sentencing hearing, the court was told details of how Howard of Old Kilcullen, Co Kildare, had manipulated and coerced her from three or four years of age in the mid-1980s until she reached puberty.

The 79-year-old pleaded guilty to a number of charges of indecently assaulting her, coercing her into sexual contact over a ten-year period.

Some of the offences occurred around the time he was a high-profile GAA referee. He refereed a series of matches between Meath and Dublin in 1991, as well as the All-Ireland Football Final between Derry and Cork in 1993.

Before passing sentence, Judge Sinead McMullen said Ms Leahy's victim impact statement had "set out very eloquently the effects the offences had had on her".

"She said it had twisted her understanding of the world and damaged her ability to form relationships."

The judge acknowledged the effect it had had on her wider family who were shocked and distressed when the abuse was disclosed.

She said the defendant was her uncle-in-law and was a trusted member of the family.

Judge McMullen took into consideration Howard’s early guilty plea, his age, and a letter of remorse, which she said, focused on the effect of his actions on Ms Leahy.

She said an aggravating factor in the case was Ms Leahy’s young age when the abuse started, and how the offending had impacted most of her childhood.

Judge McMullen imposed a sentence of eight years and three months on three counts of indecent assault and reduced the sentence to six years and nine months after mitigation.

Ms Leahy was embraced by her family outside court and she thanked them for their support.

"I have an amazing family and an amazing support network, it’s been amazing, and people have been reaching out to me and it really does help."

She said she had waived her anonymity after reading other people’s stories which had helped her. She said she hoped telling her story would help others suffering in silence to come forward.

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