Obese Abuser Avoids Prison

A church elder who indecently assaulted a young girl over a period of several years avoided jail because he was too fat.

John William McConaghy, 66, from Urbal Road, Dervock, County Antrim, sexually assaulted his victim so often it became "the norm", BBC reports. Now 44, McConaghy's victim said she was indecently assaulted from when she was around 10 until she was 18. She said that her attacker's abuse "petered out" as she got older, because she fought back by scratching his face. Judge David Smyth at Antrim Crown Court gave McConaghy a three year suspended sentence and a £10,000 fine, describing McConaghy's lack of mobility, ulcerated legs and need for frequent dressings as "wholly exceptional circumstances". But due to his weight, McConaghy won't be sent to jail because his obesity causes his health to be "precarious," as the judge mentioned. McConaghy's victim said she was unhappy with the sentence he was given but she understood the reasons for the lenient sentence. "I am happy with the sentence he got, I think that was a fair sentence, but I am not happy with the suspension of it, but I understand the reason for it on medical grounds." BBC