A Kerry man who raped and sexually abused his younger brother for years has argued that evidence of the abuse given by the complainant to a witness in “the present perfect continuous tense” should not have been admitted in his trial.
Barristers for Paul Kelly (47) submitted that when his brother Anthony, as an adult, told another family member that “Paul has been raping me for years”, this was inconsistent with the fact the abuse had ended seven years before. Barristers for the State, however, argued this was merely an “academic exercise on phraseology”.
Kelly, of Shronedraugh, Headford, Killarney, Co Kerry, had denied all charges against him. He was convicted following a trial in November 2024 of 12 sample counts of sexual assault, two counts of oral rape and 12 counts of anal rape of his younger brother Anthony Kelly at their family home on dates between 1995 and 1999. He was jailed for 7½ years by Judge Melanie Greally.
Kelly was 16 years old when he began abusing his brother and 20 when he stopped. His brother was between 10 and 14 years old at the time of the abuse. Anthony Kelly wished to waive his right to anonymity to allow his older brother to be named.
His trial heard the boys shared a bedroom, and when Anthony was about 10 years old Paul made him lie face down and then simulated sex on him. The complainant said this occurred at least three times a week for about a year-and-a-half.
