A man jailed after he was convicted of sexually assaulting his daughter's six-year-old friend has had his conviction quashed by the Court of Appeal because her lack of memory of the alleged incident due to the passing of time prevented the defence from effectively cross-examining the child.
The man (50), who cannot be named to protect the identity of the child, was convicted and sentenced to four years' imprisonment by Judge Elma Sheahan.
The man had pleaded not guilty of sexually assaulting the girl when she was visiting his daughter at a Dublin address in October 2016 but was unanimously convicted by a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court jury in May 2021.
