Woman who was raped by cousin says guilty verdict by jury 'proves justice has no expiry date'

Sonya McLean

A woman who was raped as a teenager by her cousin has said that the guilty verdict delivered by the jury “proves that justice has no expiry date”.

At the sentence hearing of Karl Fish (53) last month, the woman said that during her evidence at his trial, she “spoke for the child you broke, for the woman who carried the pain and for everyone who fears it may be too late”.

She spoke of how difficult she found the trial process as it forced her to relive the attacks. She said Fish had “twisted the truth to fit your narrative” adding that he had “tried to twist reality”.

“This time it didn’t work – the jury saw through you and held you accountable. This guilty verdict proves that justice has no expiry date,” the woman said.

Fish was convicted by a Central Criminal Court jury in October of two counts of rape and two counts of indecent assault which all occurred on the same date between November 1988 and November 1990. The victim was aged between 14 and 15 years old at the time, while Fish was 16 or 17 years old.

The woman told the court that she hopes the verdict helps other victims of sexual assaults to get the strength to come forward.

Fish (53) of Tara Hill Road, Rathfarnham, Dublin 14, pleaded not guilty to a number of sexual offences.

On Wednesday, Justice Karen O'Connor set a headline sentence of 10 years for the rape offences but reduced these to five years because of Fish's age at the time of the offending. She reduced this further to four years to take into consideration the delay in prosecuting the offending.

She said this was not a criticism but that it was a factor that needed to be taken into consideration.

Justice O'Connor noted the effects of the attacks on the victim, and noted the woman's evidence that the offending “tore through my family.... caused division”.

Detective Garda Leslie McCormack told John Hayden SC, prosecuting, that Fish was older than his cousin by two years.

She said the woman made a complaint to gardaí in May 2022. She said Fish had raped her twice when she was a young teenager and sexually assaulted her.

The woman outlined one occasion when she was babysitting for her aunt, she went to an old factory building near her aunt’s home with Fish. She said he started to kiss her and touched her under her top and down her trousers. She told him to stop but he would not.

He then told her to take her leg out of trousers before he raped her. He told her not to tell anyone because he said she would not be believed.

Fish has previous convictions for possession of knives and failing to wear a seat belt.

The woman read her own victim impact statement into the record.

She said she wanted to start her statement by thanking the court for allowing her to speak. She said Fish is “finally” being held accountable for what he did.

She also thanked her husband, her children, and the rest of her family, who she said have stood by her. “I could not have got through this without their support,” she said.

She said Fish took away “her peace, trust and sense of who I was” before she added that “time did not heal this – it just taught me how to hide the pain”. She said she did not believe that she deserved “happiness or safety”.

The woman told Fish that “the shame is no longer mine it is yours - you will finally get what has been coming to you for a long time”.

Justice O’Connor told the woman that it was a “very eloquent” victim impact statement, and it was obvious that she had put time and effort into it and “I am very grateful to you” because it gives insight into how this has impacted on you.

She said she hopes she realises by “finding your voice” that she will help other people. “At least another little boy or girl will know that this has happened to others and some of them will find their voice or eventually find their voice to take their steps – you should be proud of your courage”- Justice O’Connor said.

“I am very pleased to her you have found your strength, and you have support in that regard – of course you know there is nothing shameful at all for you”, Justice O’Connor said.

Det Gda McCormack agreed with Dominic McGinn SC, defending, that Fish had a drug problem as a younger man. She accepted that he has abided by his bail conditions and that he cooperated with the garda investigation.

Mr McGinn said that the jury have found Fish guilty on two incidences of rape and two incidences of sexual assault which all occurred on the same date.

He asked the court to take into account that Fish was a child in law at the time of the offence, being either 16 or 17 years old before he referred to case law involving dealing with people who were juveniles at the time of offending.

Mr McGinn also asked the court to recognise the delay that has occurred between the offending and the date of the offence. He said in the meantime Fish has gone on to lead “a law abiding and constructive life” before he handed in affidavits from his family members and others close to him.

Counsel said that Fish is someone that his children and grandchildren look up to. He said Fish has “struggled with difficulties” throughout his life.

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.