Co Down man who lied about gay rape allegation avoids prison

In the first case of its kind in Northern Ireland, Judge Paul Ramsey QC told Newry man Gary Kearns but for his admission to perverting the course of public justice, and psychiatric and other reports he would have jailed him for 18 months for what he’d previously described as “repellent allegations” against a “completely and totally innocent” victim.

Instead the Newry Crown Court judge told Kearns from Barcroft Park, he was prepared to reduce this to 12 months, and to suspended the sentence for two years despite his disgraceful conduct.

Judge Ramsey said by his plea of guilty in open court to the “wholly false and wicked allegation” which had caused his victim “great distress and upset”, Kearns had also removed “the shadow of this allegation hanging over” his victim.

The judge said it was “now clear” to everyone the allegation Kearns had made were “without foundation” and would be forever known in the community for the rest of his days for doing so, while his victim would be known as being the “subject to a false and wicked allegation”.

Although Judge Ramsey paid tribute to the victim’s mother for her “articulate and moving” letter setting out the effect of the claims on her vulnerable naive son, she attacked the sentence as being too lenient.

“No, I am not happy with it, no no. That’s giving him the go ahead to do the exact same again. It was just a slap on the wrist for him, but as my son has said, he is still living a jail sentence every day because of him, every day,” she said.

Prosecution lawyer Stephen McCourt told a previous hearing that in October 2014 Kearns claimed he was the victim of a gay rape, and named his alleged attacker. Over the coming months Kearns not only broadcast the news locally, but maintained when asked by police that “the allegation was true and he wanted to proceed with the complaint”.

Mr McCourt said that it was only after Kearns was told despite the denials of his alleged attacker, he was to be charged, that Kearns came clean, admitting “he had lied about the allegation of rape”.

He added that although ‘thankfully’ matters had not reached the stage of court proceedings, Kearns’ victim continues to suffer from extreme depression and anxiety and “the issues continue to blight the victim as he tries to go about his everyday life”.

Defence barrister Seamus Lannon revealed that psychiatric and other reports indicated that a remorseful Kearns “could make himself believe it happened .... persuaded himself that certain things happened when they did not .... an element of make-believe in his own mind”.

However, the lawyer said he was instructed by Kearns not to contest “anything that has been said”, and pointed out it had been Kearns himself who had gone to police to confess his guilt.

Mr Lannon claimed that Kearns “freaked out and wanted matters sorted” when he learned the injured party was to be taken to court. He added that Kearns “did not want it to go this far”, and claimed Kearns had no comprehension of the consequences of making his allegations.

Reports, he added, also indicated that Kearns accepted that he had “done wrong” and wanted to apologise to the injured party his mother and family.