Man escapes prison after early morning sex attack

Man escapes prison after early morning sex attack

8 March 2017

A CLOUGH man, who sexually assaulted a woman in a laneway after she became separated from her friends, has escaped jail “by the skin of your teeth.”

Twenty eight year-old Andrew Stevenson was instead sentenced to 100 hours’ community service and placed on probation for two years when he appeared at Downpatrick Crown Court on Wednesday.

Judge Piers Grant described Stevenson’s behaviour on the night of April 26 last year as “thoroughly reprehensible” and said the farmer from Moneycarragh Road should be “ashamed of himself.”

The assault happened by a derelict building in a Castlewellan alleyway in the early hours. The 24 year-old woman, who cannot be identified, said it occurred after she got separated from friends following an argument outside a pub where they had spent the evening.

She claimed she met Stevenson as she made her way towards a taxi rank. Stevenson told her he would look after her before committing the assault.

Stevenson was originally charged with rape and a trial began in January. But after three days of evidence the trial ended suddenly when the prosecution agreed to accept Stevenson’s plea to the lesser charge of sexual assault.

Prosecution counsel, Terence Mooney QC told the court: “The precise nature of what occurred at that time cannot be proven by the prosecution.”

Stevenson spent six days on remand in prison before Wednesday’s sentencing hearing. As Judge Grant began his remarks Stevenson’s wife sobbed quietly in the public gallery at the rear of the court.

The judge said the victim had spent the night with friends in Maginn’s Bar and had been planning to stay with friends in Loughinisland but got separated from them.

She encountered Stevenson as she walked towards a taxi rank and he put his arm around her and told her he would take her to where her friends might be.

“You took her to the lane, you were both intoxicated and the precise nature of what happened cannot be proven by the prosecution,” said Judge Grant.

“Afterwards the complainant was distressed and made a complaint shortly afterwards in a taxi office. She was taken to Newcastle police station and on April 26 the defendant was arrested and interviewed later that evening.”

At a later interview Stevenson claimed the sexual activity had been consensual.

Judge Grant said a victim impact statement showed the young woman was clearly distressed by what happened that night.

A pre-sentence report, prepared by the Probation Service, said Stevenson has a history of full employment on the family farm, did not have any previous convictions of that nature and had a lo likelihood of re-offending.

However, Judge Grant said Stevenson came very close to be sent to prison.

“Women are entitled to control their own sexual behaviour or any behaviour,” he told the court. ”Consent is a fundamental part of any sexual contact.”

“No man is entitled to act in a sexual way with a woman without consent. The obligation is on the man to ensure that consent has been obtained, it is your responsibility,” he said.

Stevenson was ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for five years and a Sexual Offences Protection Order was also put in place for five years.

“Consider yourself very fortunate,” Judge Grant told Stevenson. “You have missed a significant jail sentence by the skin of your teeth.”