Soldier Cathal Crotty set to be dismissed from Defence Forces next week

Soldier Cathal Crotty has just 48 hours to defend his position in the Defence Forces before he is discharged.

Last week, Mr Crotty (22) was given a three year suspended sentence after he assaulted Natasha O’Brien in Limerick in 2022.

Ms O’Brien was on her way home from work when she heard Mr Crotty shouting homophobic slurs at a passer-by and asked him to stop.

Mr Crotty responded by assaulting Ms O’Brien and the young woman suffered serious injuries as a result.

In the hours after the attack, Mr Crotty took to social media to boast about the attack.

“Two to put her down, two to put her out,” Mr Crotty wrote online.

In the weeks after, Ms O’Brien and her friend scoured social media platforms to find the identity of the man who assaulted her and came across Mr Crotty and the information was passed to An Garda Síochána.

There has been widespread condemnation of the sentence handed down by Judge Tom O’Donnell, who also ordered Mr Crotty to pay Ms O’Brien €3,000 in compensation.

Thousands have taken to the streets in protest, calling for reform in sentencing, while the Dáil this week gave Ms O’Brien a standing ovation and acknowledged the work she had done in speaking out after the attack.

In handing down his sentence, Justice O’Donnell noted the impact a custodial sentence could have on Mr Crotty’s career in the Defence Forces.

However, last week Mr Crotty was informed that he will be discharged from the army as a result of the assault and this could happen early next week, according to The Irish Times.

When Mr Crotty was informed of the decision to discharge him, the soldier was given the opportunity to make representations against his dismissal and appeal the decision.

While his dismissal is expected to happen next week, this could be delayed if Mr Crotty seeks a judicial review, though this has not happened yet.

Separately, a request to the Court of Appeal to review a sentence on grounds of undue leniency can be made by the Director of Public Prosecutions within 28 days of the sentence being imposed.

Earlier this week, Taoiseach Simon Harris criticised the Irish Defence Forces for their response to the fallout from Mr Crotty’s sentencing.

While the Defence Forces said internal proceedings were underway after the case, they said a review into other members who have been convicted of gender-based violence would also take place.

"It's a harsh thing for me to have to say as Taoiseach but I feel I need to say it, would the Defence Forces be carrying out their review that they're now carrying out was there not so much public interest in this?" Taoiseach Simon Harris said this week.

"There are people in the Defence Forces who clearly knew this was happening, why did they do nothing? These are very serious questions and as Taoiseach I am not satisfied in relation to this, I am not satisfied at all,” he added.

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