y=313″ alt=”File photo dated 01/05/15 of Eric Joyce leaving Westminster Magistrates Court, as the former Labour MP has pleaded guilty at Ipswich Crown Court to making an indecent photograph of a child.” />© John Stillwell/PA Wire/PA Images File photo dated 01/05/15 of Eric Joyce leaving Westminster Magistrates Court, as the former Labour MP has pleaded guilty at Ipswich Crown Court to making an indecent photograph of a child.Former Labour MP Eric Joyce has pleaded guilty to making an indecent photograph of a child. Joyce, who represented Labour for Falkirk between 2000 and 2012, before becoming an Independent until his resignation at the 2015 general election, appeared at Ipswich Crown Court today for a pre-trial hearing. According to the BBC, Joyce was charged last month after being arrested in November 2018. The charge alleged that he had made an indecent photograph of a child – described as a movie file and classified as a Category A image.Judge Emma Peters said on Tuesday that the single 51-second movie, found on a device, “depicts a number of children”.
“Some are quite young, one is said to be 12 months old,” she said. “Clearly a category-A movie.”
She said Joyce, who appeared at court in person, “says he accessed it via an email which he says was a spam email”, adding: “At the time he was drinking heavily and he has now undergone work with the Lucy Faithfull Foundation and a psychotherapist.”
Joyce, of Worlingworth, Suffolk, was granted bail and Judge Peters instructed that a report be prepared before he is sentenced on 7 August. He is also required to sign paperwork acknowledging his presence on the sex offenders register.
A statement published on Joyce’s website last month, after details of the charge emerged, said: “I will make no comment from now until all legal processes are at a close… at that point, I will make a full statement.”
Joyce, a former soldier, resigned from Labour in 2012 after admitting to common assault in a House of Commons bar, later telling MPs his “the standard of my conduct fell egregiously below what is required by a member of this House, or indeed anyone, anywhere”.
Fred Bassett wants to rattle a few cages because Denial still operates in Ireland.
Patrick Sarsfield Donegan
Not charged until 40 years after offending
Committed many offences
TD (Irish MP)
Eventually Director of Public Prosecutions recommended prosecution
Evaded prosecution on grounds of ill health, some thought it was illness of convenience
Died not long afterwards
Never faced trial
All of the above are similar to Greville Janner in England.
Donegan was accused of 70 sex attacks on 5 schoolchildren dating back to the 1950’s. One woman said the abuse started when she was just six-years-old and lasted for eight years. Her accusations were supported by four other women who all said the former politician abused them as young girls. The five women came forward to Gardai in 1997. At least some of the attacks were meant to have happened in a school [6], and one child states that she told a nun of the attacks.
The Director of Public Prosecutions decided to go ahead with the prosecution
Donegan got High Court permission in 1998 to challenge proceedings, claiming it was unfair to continue the proceedings having regard to delay in making complaints, his age, the availability of witnesses and material evidence, the generalised nature of the allegations and previous adverse media publicity.
In March 2000 Donegan went to High Court seeking an order restraining the DPP from further proceeding with the criminal prosecution. However the proceedings were struck out, as there was no determination to be made as the trial could not proceed due to his age and deteriorating mental condition. The DPP formally withdrew its prosecution 2 months later.
This denied his victims justice in the justice system but does not stop the truth.
Hopefully others will come forward with their stories. It is unlikely this abuse stopped at 5 victims. Shame of Ireland webpage is here [9] and twitter @ShameOfIreland [10].
Timeline
1923 Oct 29 Patrick Sarsfield “Paddy” Donegan born
Educated at Christian Brothers school Drogheda, County Louth
c.1942 [3] Vincentian Castleknock College, County Dublin
Accusations:
1950’s Donegan was accused to have abused children probably girls, in schools controlled by Religious nuns. There are another 5 girls and 70 offences. One girl claimed she was abused from age 6 to 14
1954 Elected for first time as Fine Gael TD (Member of Parliament equivalent)
1973 Minister of Defence
1973 Ordered building of ship Asgelard II
1976 Minister for Lands
1981 Retired
1997 Garda investigation. 5 women reported abuse
1997 File sent to DPP
1998 Donegan received High Court permission to challenge proceedings, claiming it was unfair to continue the proceedings having regard to delay in making complaints, his age, the availability of witnesses and material evidence, the generalised nature of the allegations and previous adverse media publicity
2000 Mar 30 High Court Mr Justice Kelly. A former politician, who was seeking an order restraining the DPP from further proceeding with the criminal prosecution. The DPP is not to proceed with the prosecution of a former senior politician on 70 charges of indecent assault of five children following expert medical advice that the man is unfit to stand trial due to his age and illness
2000 Mar 31 Irish Times Former politician `not fit to stand trial’ on child abuse charges
The DPP is not to proceed with the prosecution of a former senior politician on 70 charges of indecent assault of five children following expert medical advice that the man is unfit to stand trial due to his age and illness, the High Court was told yesterday.
Mr Justice Kelly struck out proceedings brought by the former politician, who was seeking an order restraining the DPP from further proceeding with the criminal prosecution, which was due to be heard in the Circuit Criminal Court.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was in national politics for more than two decades, ail and Seanad.
Five persons made allegations of indecent assault against him. The complainants are understood to be adults who claimed they were abused by the man when they were children. Some of the allegations date back more than 30 years and are alleged to have occurred in a school.
2000 May 23 Cavan Circuit Criminal Court The State withdrew the charges
2000 May 24 Irish Times Sexual assault charges withdrawn
2000 May 24 Mirror Ex Politician Unfit for Trial; Child sex abuse case is dropped. SEVENTY child sex charges were dropped because the State decided he was unfit to stand trial. The accused’s barrister Paddy McEntee revealed the DPP had agreed to drop the case based on the individual’s “deteriorating mental condition”. A victim said “I see this man out and about regularly, he is no more senile than I am. “All I wanted was a chance to face him in court and tell him what he had done to me.”
2000 Nov 26 Donegan Died
2015 Apr Donegan unmasked by Shame of Ireland, as I said there are many out there, but they are well Protected?
Fred concludes: “Justice delayed is Justice Denied”. Nobody cares about those innocents abused especially children who are destined to live lives of memories that often prevent them from living a fulfilled life; too often it is the mental health that is affected. There are no excuses to violate the innocence of children or for that matter vulnerable people too.