“I am here, I am speaking out because I want to turn my pain into purpose,” a woman who was raped by her former partner said after he was jailed for eight years.
Nathan Grant McNulty (27) of Ballyogan Avenue, Carrickmines, Co Dublin was on Friday handed a nine-year sentence with the final 12months suspended on strict conditions for the rape and coercive control of Sarah Ryan.
Ms Ryan waived her right to anonymity so that McNulty (27) could be named.
Speaking after the sentence hearing, Ms Ryan said, “I want people to know what he did, because silence protects abusers, and I will not stay silent any longer.”
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“I want everyone to understand that this can happen to young women like me, too. It can happen to anyone regardless of age, background or circumstances.”
“For anyone listening who is living in fear, please know that help is available. Please reach out. You can escape. You can survive.”
Ms Ryan said what happened to her was “pure evil” and that she suffered for years at the “hands of someone who was supposed to love me.”
“And yet, despite everything, I am here. I am speaking out because I want to turn my pain into purpose. Society needs to stop standing by and protecting abusers.”
She thanked her family, friends, gardaí and Women’s Aid for their support.
McNulty pleaded guilty to charges of rape and coercive control. These pleas were acceptable to the Director of Public Prosecutions on a full facts basis, the Central Criminal Court has heard.
He has no previous convictions.
Evidence was heard that he raped the injured party in March 2019. She told gardaí it was extremely painful and that she told McNulty to stop, but he didn’t.
The court also heard that McNulty coercively controlled her. He was physically and verbally abusive and threatened her.
In one incident, he told her, “I own you. I’m not joking, I own you.”
Reading her victim impact statement at an earlier sentence hearing, Ms Ryan said she felt “I was trapped in a nightmare from the very beginning.”
She said the beatings reached a point where she thought McNulty was going to kill her. She said she wished sometimes he would have killed her, as it would have meant an end to the suffering.
She said she was afraid to tell anyone and that McNulty exerted such control over her life that “it felt it wasn’t mine any more.”
She said she used to be bubbly and outgoing, but is now suffering from severe depression and anxiety.
She said the criminal process was “extremely distressing” for her and her family, describing herself as a “shell of a person”.
Imposing sentence, Mr Justice Tony Hunt noted that McNulty’s offending took place in the context of an intimate and domestic relationship, which is an aggravating factor.
He set a global headline sentence of 13 years, which he reduced to nine years to take account of the mitigation and McNulty’s personal circumstances.
The judge said he would suspend the final year of the sentence under strict conditions, and placed McNulty under the supervision of the Probation Services for two years post-release.
An investigating garda gave evidence that McNulty and the injured party met in 2018 and quickly started a relationship.
In March of that year, there was an argument between the couple, after which he headbutted her, knocking her on to the road.
Later that year, he grabbed and punched her arm. In another incident, he grabbed and smashed her phone against the wall.
McNulty would ring the injured party constantly to ask what she was doing. He also took her phone, checked messages and blocked men in a manner she saw as jealous and controlling.
He also gave out to her for wearing make-up and berated her if she didn’t.
The relationship ended in March 2022, the court heard.
The court was told that McNulty experienced suicidal ideation around the time that the relationship ended and was detained under the Mental Health Act for a period.
He was later interviewed, but made no comment in relation to most questions.
The investigating garda agreed with Michael Lynn SC, defending, that McNulty has complied with all bail conditions and has a young child with his new partner.
It was accepted that substance abuse by McNulty was a feature of this case, and the guilty plea was of benefit to the prosecution.
A letter of apology, testimonials and a probation report were provided to the court.
