Crotty jailed as judge overturns lenient sentence

The Court of Appeal has set aside the original fully suspended three-year sentence imposed on former soldier Cathal Crotty and instead sentenced him to two years in prison for a violent random attack on a woman. Crotty, 22, with an address at Parkroe Heights, Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, had assaulted 25-year-old Natasha O’Brien on O’Connell Street in Limerick in May 2022. The incident occurred when Ms O’Brien intervened after he attempted to use a homophobic term against another person. She was also knocked out in the course of the attack.

After the attack, Crotty sent a boasting Snapchat message saying “two to put her down, two to put her out,” while also trying in the immediate aftermath of the assault to blame Ms O’Brien for the attack. He subsequently pleaded guilty to a charge of assault causing harm when confronted with CCTV evidence, having initially been sentenced at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court last June.

The lenient sentence sparked protests and public outcry across the country. Ms. O’Brien received a standing ovation in the Dáil, where she expressed her dissatisfaction with the original judgment. Today, Ms. Justice Isobel Kennedy said the original sentence was unduly lenient and failed to reflect the gravity of Crotty’s actions or serve as an adequate deterrent.

The appeal, by the Director of Public Prosecutions, contended the suspended sentence was not commensurate with the gravity of the offence. Ms Justice Kennedy said she agreed that view because the original sentence gave too much weight to mitigating factors and did not impose an effective punishment. She said that members of the public were entitled to walk the streets without being attacked, and it was necessary that unprovoked attacks be punished properly to reflect the abhorrence of society, as well as for deterrence.

The judge described the attack as a brutal, unprovoked assault on a defenceless woman. He said Crotty’s violent response came after Ms. O’Brien asked him to desist from using homophobic language. She called the attack cowardly and callous because Crotty fled the scene, leaving Ms. O’Brien injured and bleeding, and it could have been much worse except a bystander intervened. In any case, the offence was compounded by his action in posting a reprehensible Snapchat message boasting about the attack.

Ms. O’Brien suffered serious physical and psychological trauma due to the incident. Although the trial judge had considered the effect of a custodial sentence on Crotty’s career in the Defence Forces – where he lost his job following the case – Ms. Justice Kennedy stressed that the consequences of one’s actions cannot overly influence sentencing decisions.

Notwithstanding the fact that Crotty had no previous convictions, his having pleaded guilty, and offering €3,000 in compensation as a token of remorse, the court found these insufficient to support the original leniency. Ms. Justice Kennedy noted that Crotty had only pleaded guilty after the playing of irrefutable CCTV evidence, having initially claimed the victim was at fault.

The court ultimately quashed the original sentence and imposed a three-year prison term, suspending the final year. Crotty was taken into custody immediately following the decision.