by A woman who was beaten unconscious by an Irish soldier believes the attack was motivated by “deep-rooted homophobia”, she told GCN. Cathal Crotty walked free from Limerick Criminal Circuit Court after having his entire sentence suspended on Thursday, June 20, despite pleading guilty to the vicious unprovoked attack.
As reported by David Raleigh, the incident in question took place on 29 May 2022, when Natasha O’Brien and a friend “politely” asked Crotty, who they did not know and who had been drinking alcohol during the evening , stop the shouting. “f*ggot” by others in the street. The 22-year-old Irish soldier is said to have then targeted the women, shouting homophobic insults at O’Brien, who identifies as a lesbian, before physically assaulting her.
The court was told that Crotty grabbed the now 24-year-old by the hair with one hand and slammed her to the ground with the other, hitting her up to six times until she lost consciousness. The woman had a broken nose and bruises, and said she thought she had been killed.
Crotty fled when a man who was passing by intervened, but his friends remained at the scene on O’Connell Street in Limerick. Afterwards, the attacker bragged about the incident on Snapchat, saying: “Two to put her down, two to put her out”, referring to O’Brien being punched four times.
The Irish soldier initially tried to blame the victim, falsely telling gardaí that she had initiated the attack. However, after authorities were shown unprovoked CCTV footage of Crotty’s location on the woman, he admitted his guilt but did not give a full explanation for the attack.
Reading his victim impact statement in court, O’Brien said: “When Cathal Crotty attacked me I went into shock, I didn’t understand why this was happening to me, I felt helpless, I felt that I was using. like a punching bag, I didn’t feel human.”
She said, as she lay in the fetal position, the last thing she thought before losing consciousness was: “It’s not stopping, I’m going to die”.
“The physical injuries I sustained were horrific; severe concussion, broken nose, severe swelling, and bruises on both arms, shoulder, head, upper right thigh, left eye, cheek and jaw… I spent the following weeks and months attending hospital and doctor appointments , and because of persistent concussion symptoms I was considered ‘high risk’ for brain bleeding, and I received a battery of tests including a head CT scan,” she explained.
“I was always afraid that it could lead to my death. Cathal Crotty’s actions have left me in a dark place, I suffer from PTSD symptoms, and have had to see multiple therapists since the attack.”
She said she experienced “constant terror and isolation” and “lost all interest and motivation in life”.
“Basic tasks at work became extremely difficult and eventually I lost my job due to my rapidly declining performance. I became numb and detached from reality, living in constant fear of seeing him again,” O’Brien continued.
“(Crotty) may not remember, but my memory of the sinister look in his eyes as he approached me will forever haunt me. I believe the man who passed by, who intervened, saved my life.”
She concluded: “I am here to seek justice, not only for myself, but to protect others from violence and malice that I have suffered.”
Despite O’Brien’s statement and the vicious attack, Judge Tom O’Donnell said “credit must be given to Crotty” for pleading guilty.
“In fairness, he came to court and publicly admitted his wrongdoing, and he has made a public admission of his criminality,” the judge said. He also indicated that he would have to consider Crotty’s career as a soldier, saying it would be taken away from him if he served prison time.
The Judge awarded the attacker a full three-year suspended sentence and ordered him to pay €3,000 compensation to the victim.
Speaking afterwards, O’Brien said: “I lost my job because of his actions, because I was so influenced by what he did, but this judge doesn’t want to put him in jail because he means that he will lose his job… That is not right.”
She added that she was “glad” she had used her voice but felt the court had sent a “message” that anyone can attack women in public and not go to jail.
Since the incident in 2022, Crotty has remained in the Defense Forces, with one of his superior officers in Dunsarsealaigh, Superintendent Paul Togher, telling the court that he was an “exemplary”, “courteous”, “professional” and It is “disciplinary”. . After the hearing, however, it is reported that the Defense Forces have begun the process of dismissing the soldier.
The situation is the cause of public anger, and protests were held in three cities across Ireland. ROSA is organizing the demonstrations in Limerick, Cork and Dublin, all taking place on Saturday, June 22. On the same day at 2pm, there will also be a protest in Galway.
If you have been affected by this story or want to reach out to someone for support, advice or just to talk, there are many services available to LGBTQ+ people, many of which offer instant messaging support:
Samaritans
SpunOut.ie
LGBT Helpline
The Switchboard
Dublin Lesbian Line
Be a member of
TENI
LGBTQI Pavee Point
Aware
Pieta’s house
puzzles
Mental Health Ireland
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