Paedophile father fails to overturn conviction for abusing second daughter
Fiona Magennis
A paedophile who raped one of his daughters while she was pregnant has failed in a bid to overturn his conviction for repeatedly sexually abusing her sister when the child was aged between seven and 12.
Oliver Berry abused his daughter Sharon up to three times a week and also subjected the child to physical violence. She ran away from home when she was 12 years old.
Berry, of Newtown Lawns, Mullingar, had pleaded not guilty to 25 counts of indecent assault relating to Sharon Berry between 1980 and 1986, but was convicted following a trial in June 2023.
He was handed a seven-year sentence by Ms Justice Patricia Ryan on July 25th, 2023, to run consecutive to a prison term he was already serving for the sexual abuse of another of his daughters, Jennifer Berry.
The 68-year-old was previously jailed for 10 years in 2018, after a Central Criminal Court jury convicted him of 104 counts of both raping and sexually assaulting Jennifer between December 1982 and December 1994. She was aged between seven and 19 at the time.
This sentence was subsequently increased by three years following a successful appeal by the State.
That trial heard he raped Jennifer throughout her pregnancy and while her two-week-old baby was in the same room.
Berry maintained his innocence after the trial, and Ms Berry's mother, who has since separated from Berry, ed him and gave evidence in his defence during the trial.
Berry had appealed his conviction, arguing that the trial judge had made an error in ruling that the complainant was competent to give evidence.
It was further argued that the judge had erred in not permitting a competency hearing in respect of Ms Berry and in setting limits on the extent to which she could be cross-examined.
Dismissing his appeal on Tuesday, against his conviction for abusing Sharon, Ms Justice Tara Burns said none of the appellant's grounds of appeal had been upheld.
Ms Justice Burns noted that the proceedings had a “protracted history”. She said several trials ended with a discharge of the jury or an adjournment after queries were raised about the victim’s capacity to give evidence.
Further arguments arose over whether her initial complaints were reliable, having regard to a mental health issue which the victim disclosed during her evidence in the first trial.
During her evidence in that trial, Ms Berry said she was under “psychiatric care” and was on medication. Following further investigation, the victim's medical records were disclosed.
In dismissing Berry’s appeal, Ms Justice Burns said the appellant received the victim’s medical records relating to her mental health.
She said it then became a matter for him whether to instruct an expert to determine the effect on the victim, if any, of the mental health conditions referred to in her medical records.
She said this could have been used to attempt to lay a foundation in respect of the competency hearing or to challenge the reliability of the victim’s original complaint, but this was not done.
The judge said the height of the challenge was an assertion that the complainant was not competent to give evidence based on a diagnosis of schizophrenia that the victim indicated she had been informed of some time prior to August 2008.
“No evidence was led as to what the effect, if any, such a diagnosis could have on her ability to tell the truth,” she said. “In those circumstances, the trial judge did not err in declining to hold a competency hearing.”
Ms Justice Burns also dismissed the grounds of appeal related to the limitations put on the cross-examination, noting that the relevance of her mental health could only be from the perspective of her reliability as a witness.
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.
