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A MAN WHO effectively tortured his pregnant girlfriend by pouring boiling water over her, after first adding sugar to the water increasing its boiling point, has been given extra prison time by the Court of Appeal.
Michael Lynch (25), had pleaded not guilty to assault causing harm to his four-and-a-half month pregnant girlfriend Tara Byrd (25) at their house on the Old Youghal Road in Cork city on 27 July 2015.
A jury at Cork Circuit Criminal Court found him guilty of assault but acquitted him of making threats to kill on the same occasion. He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years imprisonment by Judge David Riordan on 7 June 2016.
Lynch lost an appeal against his conviction today on all grounds.
However, in a cross appeal, the Director of Public Prosecutions successfully sought a review of his sentence on grounds that it was “unduly lenient”.
Giving judgment in the Court of Appeal, Mr Justice Alan Mahon said Lynch had been living with the victim when he poured boiling water, to which he had first added sugar, from a kettle onto her left leg, causing her severe injury.
At the time Byrd was four-and-a-half months pregnant.
She suffered third degree burns to her leg, spent approximately ten days in hospital and underwent skin graft surgery. She has been left with severe scarring of her left leg.
Immediately following the incident, the victim told a number of people – including paramedics and medical staff – that she had spilled the boiling water over herself as she was making coffee.
Four days later, she told her father that Lynch was responsible.
When interviewed by gardaí, Lynch stated that she had spilt the boiling water over herself.
‘Pre-meditated, callous and merciless assault’
Counsel for the Director of Public Prosecutions, Ray Boland BL, submitted that the sentencing judge erred in placing the severity of the assault at the mid to high range rather than at the high range of assaults.
Justice Mahon said the offence was particularly serious. It was a “pre-meditated, callous and merciless assault on an innocent woman in a domestic setting”.
“The fact that sugar was added to the water before it was boiled places the gravity of the offence at the very highest level” because “in reality, it amounted to torture”.
The court heard that sugar increases the point at which water boils.
Justice Mahon said the Court of Appeal believed the offence warranted a headline sentence at the maximum – five years.
The mitigating factors included Lynch’s difficult personal circumstances and his relative young age of 24.
Justice Mahon said it appeared that the sentencing judge treated as a mitigating factor the fact the offence was not committed while on bail in relation to another section 3 assault conviction.
On the contrary, Justice Mahon said, a previous conviction can never be a mitigating factor. In many instances it will be an aggravating factor.
Justice Mahon, who sat with Justice George Birmingham and Justice John Edwards, said two-and-a-half years for this “very grave offence was unduly lenient”.
“With some reluctance” and giving Lynch greater benefit for the mitigating factors than “perhaps they probably deserve” the court suspended the final 12 months on condition he entered into a good behaviour bond for the suspended period.
Lynch accordingly undertook to be so bound.
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Took me over six months to get the domestic grant payment. I had to chase it up constantly and everything went into them perfect. I Still haven’t got the payment from Energis 10 months later. If I owed them money that long, I would have no electricity. Why is there no fine or punishment to them for sticking the fingers up to the rest of us?
As with most grant systems only certain registered companies can be used. Then these companies charge more normally to the value of the grant.
@Craic_a_tower: Unfortunately that’s what usually happens when government subsidises a scheme or service. Suppliers take the P***. Happened years ago when government introduced a grant for central heating. Central heating installation went up by 2 grand over night.
Same with HAP. That has also driven rents up (as government won’t build):
@Fr. Fintan Stack: don’t agree on HAP and most landlords don’t and never wanted it hence they made it illegal to refuse
@Craic_a_tower: “don’t agree on HAP” – ??
So what are you saying? HAP hasn’t contributed to greed?
There’s no grant for a new build unfortunately which doesn’t make a huge pile of sense to me anyway. Will need to go without for now and hope to get them further down the road. If anyone knows any way around this, I’d love to hear.
Problem is the rip off sales people. Quoting people for things they don’t need, won’t work.
Also the price difference from different installers can’t be doubled for the same system.
I was luckily enough to get 7panels(2.5kw) for €2500 after the grant early last year. Price is almost doubled now. I’m going to DIY 4 or maybe 8 onto the shed roof next month ad seems the only affordable way at the moment.
There is a good thread on boards.ie i woild suggest anyone thinking of investing to read/post thete before committing to a purchase
@pkunzip doom2.zip: The quote I was given was 9k for mine, when I got my ducks in a row 2 months later it was 23.
@pkunzip doom2.zip: you’re right, a friend of mine, a carpenter, was quoted €15000 after the grant. He bought the panel and system from a company in Northern Iteland and installed the panels, the inverter, and cabling himself and got an electrician in to wire it up and certified it all for around the €7500 mark. Companies are ripping customers off.
I got solar panels 3 years ago and was assured I would qualify for grant. Assessor came out and said house was up to ber standard. Next day got call to say it wasn’t unless I provided information and rating for installed windows. Company I used for all new windows had gone out of business. It’s a joke.
Will housing trusts and country councils be installing panels on houses? If not why not?
@Mary Fitzsimons: they have been upgrade council owned property for years at no charge to the residents. It actually seems unfair on the neighbours who bought their properties from the council. As for trusts they are charities who try to house as many people they can but you seem to think they should provide better than people buying their own property.
Sun Arc Solar Systems do the majority of the grant work for the homeowner, I had my grant back in 6 weeks after the installation from this company.
@Charmaine ☘ Irish: Thing is, say for me as an example is the money you have to pay for the job. I wouldn’t be able to get a loan at my age to upgrade my home. Unless you have the money first go then it’s a non runner for a lot I’d imagine.
@Dave Barrett: yes, I get what your saying, if anyone had the money, it makes sense to get it as the money you have in the bank account or under the mattress wouldn’t give the same return as solar power.. it is a really sound investment.. but if your of a certain age, maybe idly might not make sense
I went with Activ8 and they did all the paper, they reduced the cost I paid them by the amount of the grant. I didn’t have to do a single thing
Overall the grant needs to be more or remove the vat from it
Like Charmaine I had my grant back in 8 weeks and the installer JM Energi Ballingeary did everything connected to the grant
I got my solar PV a year ago and the grant process was all online and almost all of it was done by the contractor, nice and simple. I put in a heat pump 6 months ago and the process was all by paper and post, involving me sending parts of forms to different people to fill in their bit and then have to wait for them to come back and send on to the next person, before collating it all to send onto SEAI. All very time consuming, slow and tedious. I don’t understand why they have different systems for different grants.
The worst part isn’t the grant process, it’s trying to get a contractor. It’s like they are interviewing the customers and deciding if you are worthy of their time. I feel sorry for anyone that has a non standard installation, as they will find very hard to get a contractor.
It’s the overall cost that is putting people off
From a domestic point of view I found it very easy and efficient. I applied and the same day they got back to me saying it was approved. Then 3 weeks after the installer sent in their paperwork the grant was paid into my account.
I got my solar PV a year ago and the grant process was all online and almost all of it was done by the contractor, nice and simple. I put in a heatpump 6 months ago and the process was all by paper and post, involving me sending parts of forms to different people to fill in their bit and then have to wait for them to come back and send on to the next person, before collating it all to send onto SEAI. All very time consuming, slow and tedious. I don’t understand why they have different systems for different grants.
The worst part isn’t the grant process, it’s trying to get a contractor. It’s like they are interviewing the customers and deciding if you are worthy of their time. I feel sorry for anyone that has a non standard installation, as they will find very hard to get a contractor.
I refurbished an old house and filled all the forms for SEAI , got BER, technical assessment fully compliant registered contractor as required. Spent €€€€ on roof, walls, floor, heat pump. Still waiting for ‘Michelle’ in SEAI to deal with my claim ……..! Complete waste of time !
This could be solved by a process that allowed the householder to sign the grant over to the installer, with a robust auditing process and the use of approved installers. That process works in other areas.
If every building had wind/solar… hmmm
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