Thurles Information

A Tipperary man has been jailed for 10 years, with a one-year post-release supervision order, for the rape of a female acquaintance whom he had collected from hospital, in the early hours of the morning.

The victim had been out socialising on the night in question and had fallen, before being conveyed to hospital by ambulance for observation.

Mr Padraic Troy, aged 29 years, of Golden Gardens, Dundrum Co. Tipperary, was convicted following a trial at the Central Criminal Court, of two counts of rape, anal rape and two sexual assaults of the woman back in 2021.

While at the hospital, the victim had telephoned several people, including contacting Mr Troy, seeking assistance. Mr Troy had arrived at the hospital after 3:00am, and she had accepted transport in his company and in the company of another male.

The first sexual assault by Mr Troy occurred while in the car. It was there that he began kissing her, leaving the victim feeling disgusted, while she impressed on him her willingness only to return home.
On returning home the victim was assisted inside. The second male left, leaving her on her own with Mr Troy, who then raped her, anally raped and sexually assaulted her in her bedroom.

On the following day, the victim reported on what had happened to the Gardaí, before being examined at a Sexual Assault Treatment Unit. A DNA profile matching Mr Troy was identified from her under garments.

Mr Troy, when interviewed later by Gardaí, claimed he had been involved in consensual sex only with the victim.

Passing sentence, Ms Justice Melanie Greally stated that the multiplicity of distinct violations and the degree of physical force used; the victims vulnerability at the time of the incident and the overall impact on the victim were among the most aggravating of the factors in the case.

Mr Troy already had 20 previous convictions; these included theft, public order offences, assault and road traffic offences.

The court also heard that the victim wished for Mr Troy to be publicly named, while the victim herself, wished to maintain her anonymity.

Ms Justice Greally wished the victim well for the future and expressed the court’s hope that her continued recovery, from this experience, would endure.

The Irish Cabinet have granted approval to progress legislation to commence the drafting of legislation that will, in certain situations, remove guardianship rights from individuals convicted of killing their partner or the other parent of their child.

The issues around guardianship of children in a scenario where one parent or guardian kills the other, should not be regarded as a matter of private law between the families concerned but, instead, should be regarded as a child protection and welfare issue arising in the public law area.

The proposed legislation delivers on the Programme for Government commitment to “examine proposals to remove guardianship rights from those convicted of killing their partners or a parent of their child”. It is part of the ongoing work to implement appropriate recommendations from the Study on Familicide and Domestic and Family Violence Death Reviews.

This General Scheme of the Guardianship of Infants (Amendment) Bill 2025, which will be referred to the relevant Joint Oireachtas Committee for pre-legislative scrutiny, is intended to prevent vulnerable children from further trauma, to provide clarity for surviving family members, and to prevent perpetrators from maintaining control over these children’s lives.

The proposed legislation allows for an application to court within six months of the conviction of a parent or guardian of a child for murder or manslaughter of another parent or guardian of the child. On this application the court will make an order removing or confirming the convicted parent or guardian. The legislation will not be retrospective.

Following pre-legislative scrutiny, drafting of the Guardianship of Infants (Amendment) Bill 2025 along the lines of the General Scheme will commence.

Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024.

Meanwhile today, also saw the commencement of the landmark Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024.

The office holders, senior leaders, Board and Authority members to these new and reformed bodies will now formally take up their appointments and roles.

Today, President M.D. Higgins appointed Ms Emily Logan as Ireland’s first Police Ombudsman, nominated by the government, following an open competition undertaken by the Public Appointments Service.

The commencement of the Act follows the establishment of new Votes for the Policing and Community Safety Authority and Fiosrú – The Office of the Police Ombudsman on Tuesday. Dáil approval was required for the allocation of funds to the two bodies through a Revised Estimate and a motion was brought by the Minister before the Dáil, to approve the allocations.