Harsher sentence sought in case of former soldier Cathal Crotty for assault of young woman

The wholly suspended sentence imposed on former soldier Cathal Crotty, who beat Natasha O'Brien unconscious on a public street in Limerick city after she asked him to stop shouting homophobic abuse, sends out the wrong message regarding society's attitude towards such crimes, the Director of Public Prosecutions has argued.

In an application to overturn the original sentence against Crotty, 22, on the grounds that it is unduly lenient, Lily Buckley bl told the Court of Appeal that a prison sentence is required to deter others who might consider committing similar crimes.

Addressing the court this Thursday morning, Ms Buckley said the DPP has no issue with the sentencing judge setting a headline sentence of four years for the assault. However, the director is of the view that the decision to reduce that to three years, fully suspended, gave too much weight to the mitigating factors in the case.

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The sentencing judge, the now retired Judge Tom O'Donnell, identified Crotty's guilty plea, good service record in the army, and lack of previous convictions as mitigating factors. Ms Buckley said the judge also appeared to place significant weight on the fact that Crotty was likely to lose his job as a result of his conviction.

Ms Buckley pointed out that Crotty is not married and has no dependents, submitting that the judge had placed excessive weight on the likely job-loss.

The Court of Appeal has viewed CCTV footage of the assault before Crotty's lawyers will be given a chance to respond to the DPP's submissions.

The Crotty case prompted a public and political outcry in July last year after it emerged that Crotty had assaulted Ms O'Brien  on a street in Limerick city on May 29, 2022 after she heard him call someone a "faggot" and asked him to stop shouting homophobic abuse.

He then verbally abused Ms O'Brien using the same word before carrying out the assault.

Crotty initially lied to gardaí, telling them he had been attacked first, but changed his story when confronted with CCTV.

Hours after the attack Crotty, who was a serving member of the Defence Forces at the time, boasted on Snapchat: “Two to put her down, two to put her out,” in reference to striking Ms O’Brien. He was discharged from the army in July.

Crotty, from Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, was aged 20 at the time of the assault.

In June 2023, Judge O’Donnell, sitting at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court, imposed a suspended three-year term on Crotty and ordered him to pay €3,000 compensation to Ms O’Brien.

The hearing before the three-judge Court of Appeal is continuing this afternoon.