Man guilty of sex assault on disabled patient fails in court bid

A man who sexually assaulted a profoundly disabled hospital patient targeted her because he knew “she didn’t have a voice”, the Court of Appeal held on Friday.
Scales of JusticeScales of Justice
Scales of Justice

Senior judges dismissed Ronnie Carleton’s challenge to his 18-month prison term after ruling he had inflicted harm and distress on the vulnerable victim violated in a mixed ward in the dead of night.

Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan said: “The timing of the attack indicates a degree of opportunism at the very least, and possibly a degree of planning in the way it was done with a view to avoiding detection.”

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Careton, 56, of Ballymena Road in Cullybackey, admitted sexually touching the woman at Antrim Area Hospital in March 2016.

He was on the high dependency unit after suffering hallucinations from alcohol withdrawal.

His victim, who had the rare genetic disorder Rett syndrome which affects muscles and speech, was in a nearby bed. She died nine months later.

The court heard how a nurse discovered Carleton carrying out the assault in the early hours of the morning while other patients slept.

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In June last year Carleton was ordered to serve 18 months in prison and a further 18 months on licence.

Defence barrister Charles McCreanor accepted his client’s actions were “repulsive”, but argued that the trial judge may have “double-counted” during the sentencing process.

But a series of aggravating features were identified in a case which Sir Declan described as “quite shocking”.

He said the victim had been attacked when she should have expected to be totally safe while receiving treatment in hospital.

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Referring to her vulnerability, the Lord Chief Justice stressed Carleton would have known she was unable to reveal what he had done to her.

“She did not have a voice, and he knew she did not have a voice,” Sir Declan said.

“We consider the sentence may have been at the top end of the range, but we do not consider it was outside the range in these most unusual and distressing circumstances.”