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Pair to face sentencing in September over sexual assault of schoolgirl in Galway
Galway Bay fm newsroom – Two 19-year-old students who have pleaded guilty respectively to the rape and sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl in the city in 2012 are to face sentencing in September.
They were both granted bail today at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Galway.
The first youth, who is a Leaving Cert student in another part of the country, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Galway yesterday, to the statutory rape of the then 15-year-old schoolgirl in an apartment in Galway city on August 1, 2012.
The youth was initially charged with raping the girl, but pleaded guilty instead before his trial was due to begin, to the defilement, or statutory rape of the then underage girl.
His friend, who is 19 also and a student in another city, pleaded guilty to the sexual assault of the girl during the same incident.
The matter was adjourned to today’s court sitting to fix a date for sentence.
In court today, John Jordan SC prosecuting, applied to have both accused remanded in custody to await sentence in September.
Det. Sgt. Paudie O’Shea strenuously objected to an application made by counsel for both accused to remand them on continuing bail pending sentence.
Det. O’Shea said he genuinely feared both accused would flee the jurisdiction if granted bail.
Observing both accused had obeyed the conditions of their bail for the last year, Mr Justice Barry White remanded them on continuing bail to appear before the court again on September 10 next for sentence.
He placed both of them on the Sex Offenders Register and directed probation reports be prepared prior to sentence.
Galway Bay fm newsroom – UHG was the third most overcrowded hospital in the country last month.
728 patients were waiting for a bed during January.
Meanwhile, 417 patients were waiting on trolleys at Portiuncula Hospital – the worst January on record for the Ballinasloe hospital.
11,289 people were recorded on hospital trolleys since January 1st
That’s up 2 and half thousand on the same time last year.
University Hospital Limerick continues to be the worst affected by over-crowding, accounting for 10 per cent of the overall figure, at 1,180.
Cork, Galway, Letterkenny, and St. Vincent’s in Dublin make up the top five – totalling of over 3,000.
That’s in stark contrast with the bottom five – Tullamore, Portlaoise, the National Children’s Hospital, Connolly Hospital, and Waterford – with a combined total of 213.
The INMO says, “a lack of adequate planning has put unnecessary stress on nurses and the patients”, describing January’s figures as “unacceptably high”.
Galway Bay fm newsroom – Athenry, Loughrea, Headford and Gort are now priorities for upcoming transport studies.
Systra Ltd will carry out some of the studies, which must also align with each Local area plan.
The studies will look at modes of travel, options for new Active Travel measures and a traffic management plan.
Councillor Andrew Reddington explains how this has come about and outlines how it will work in Headford, for example
Galway Bay fm newsroom – Galway has a home vacancy rate just above the national average of 4 percent.
Across the county, 6 percent of homes are vacant, according to Gerdirectory’s Residential Buildings Report.
At the end of 2022, Leitrim had the highest number of vacancies, at 12 percent, followed closely by Mayo on 11 percent.
While Dublin has the lowest, with just one percent of homes there vacant.
Nationally, over 83,500 residential properties were vacant last month, with the report finding the West was worst affected.
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