Man on attempted rape charge unfit to plead

Press, 5 July 1985, Page 12

Man on attempted rape charge unfit to plead

A man, aged 25, found unfit to plead to a charge of attempting to rape a woman pensioner in her home on April 30 was ordered by Judge Fogarty in the District Court yesterday to be detained in a mental hospital. Having listened to evidence by two doctors at a depositions hearing before him, the Judge said he was satisfied that because of the extent by which the defendant was mentally disordered he was unable to plead.. He made a final order suppressing the defendant’s name. Mr T. M. Abbott, for the defendant, said the prosecution evidence, in statement form, was admitted. Sergeant W. J. McCormick said that on the night of April 30 the complainant, who lives alone, was at her flat watching television and knitting. The complainant, in her statement to the police, said that in response to a knock at the door, which was locked, she opened it a little and the defendant, saying he wanted to speak to her, pushed her back into the room and closed the door. The woman fell back on

the floor and the defendant then indicated he wanted to have sex with her, said Sergeant McCormick. A struggle ensued during which the defendant attempted to remove the woman’s pantyhose. She hit the defendant, who then pressed his thumb on her throat almost cutting off her breath. When a clock in the room struck 7 p.m. the woman told the defendant that some friends were due “at any time." He then jumped up and left, said the complainant’s statement. Items which fell out of his clothing — a handkerchief, a packet of sandwiches, and three social welfare documents — on to the floor during the struggle were produced as exhibits by Sergeant McCormick. It was estimated that the incident in the flat lasted about 10 minutes. The complainant suffered a painful back as a result of her fall, Sergeant McCormick said. When apprehended and the items left behind shown to him, the defendant said they were his and that he could have left them behind “at an old lady’s house” the previous night, said Ser-

geant McCormick. After having his statement read back to him, the defendant signed the document with a cross, said Sergeant McCormick. Statements handed in by two detectives assigned to the inquiry completed the prosecution’s case. Dr Arthur Jones, a consultant psychiatrist attached to the Stewart Villa at Sunnyside Hospital, confirmed to Mr Abbott the making of reports regarding the defendant’s mental capabilities in which he said he found him unfit to plead. After extensive psychological tests, he was quite satisfied the defendant suffered from schizophrenia, Dr Jones said. Dr Terence Joseph Johnson, a consultant psychologist, agreed in response to a question by Sergeant McCormick that in the first two reports to the court he had indicated the defendant’s fitness to plead. Dr Johnson said the defendant’s condition had changed during the intervening period so that by the time of writing the third report, on May 16, he had formed the opinion that the defendant was not fit to plead.