DPP appeals suspended sentence for soldier Cathal Crotty

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has appealed against the three-year suspended sentence imposed on soldier Cathal Crotty for attacking a woman.

The appeal against the unjustified reduction of the suspended sentence was lodged on Friday, 28 June.

However, no date has yet been set for the first hearing in the appeal; the hearing will take place before the Court of Appeal.

Crotty, 22, of Park Row Heights in Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, was given a suspended sentence at Limerick Circuit Court on June 19 for attacking 24-year-old Natasha O’Brien and leaving her unconscious in O’Connell Street, Limerick. He later boasted about the attack on social media.

READ MORE – Cathal Crotty is expected to be discharged from the armed forces next week

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Ms O’Brien said afterwards that justice had not been done. She felt the court had sent “the message” to Crotty and everyone else that they could attack women in public without going to prison.

Crotty’s sentence sparked nationwide protests and Ms O’Brien received a standing ovation in the Dáil last week.

Crotty had initially attempted to shift the blame onto the innocent victim, Ms O’Brien, by falsely telling the police who arrested him that Ms O’Brien had instigated the attack on May 29, 2022 in O’Connell Street, Limerick.

However, after Garda showed Crotty CCTV footage showing him attacking Ms O’Brien without provocation, he admitted his guilt at Limerick District Criminal Court.

Hours after the attack, Crotty boasted to friends on Snapchat: “Two to knock her down, two to knock her unconscious,” referring to the four punches he delivered to Ms O’Brien.

Crotty, who had been drinking alcohol all day on the evening in question, never gave a full explanation for the attack in which he pulverized Ms O’Brien with up to six blows.

The court heard he appeared to have attacked Ms O’Brien, of North Circular Road, Limerick, after she and a friend “politely” asked him to stop calling other people “faggot” on the street.

Ms O’Brien, who did not know Crotty, was walking home with a friend after her shift at a pub when he brutally attacked her.

Crotty grabbed Mrs. O’Brien by the hair and knocked her to the ground.

He continued to hold her hair with one hand and hit her in the face with the other until she lay on the floor and lost consciousness, the court heard.

In court, Ms O’Brien bravely walked past Crotty to take the witness box and read a victim impact statement to the court.

“As I was lying in the fetal position and losing consciousness, he was beating me relentlessly – my last conscious thought was: ‘He’s not going to stop, I’m going to die.'”

“The physical injuries I sustained were devastating: a severe concussion, a broken nose, severe swelling and bruising to both arms, shoulders, head, right thigh, left eye, cheek and jaw.

“I spent the following weeks and months in hospitals and with doctors. Due to the persistent symptoms of a concussion, I was considered to be at high risk of brain haemorrhage and underwent a series of tests, including a CT scan of the head.

“I lived in constant fear that it could lead to my death. Cathal Crotty’s actions have left me in a state of darkness, I suffer from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder and have had to see several therapists since the attack.”

Judge Tom O’Donnell said Crotty’s behaviour that night was “absolutely appalling”.

The judge said he had “no doubt” that if he immediately sentenced Crotty to prison, his “career in the army” would be over.

Judge O’Donnell said the sentence was “five years” and imposed a three-year prison term, suspended in its entirety. He also ordered Crotty to pay Ms O’Brien €3,000 in compensation, without prejudice to any possible civil action.

In a subsequent speech, Ms O’Brien criticised the verdict, saying: “I lost my job because of his (Crotty’s) actions because I was so affected by what he did, but this judge does not want to put him in prison because that would mean he would lose his job.”

“This is not justice,” said Ms O’Brien.