Addressing a lack of high-quality sentencing information in Ireland, this important book explores the factors that influence judges to impose a sentence of long-term imprisonment in sexual offence cases.

Judges have made it clear that sentences of 15 years to life imprisonment are to be reserved for offending that is ‘truly egregious’. Griffin, using over 100 serious sexual offence cases, examines what this means in practice. The book is designed to be used in the classroom and the court, as well as providing a solid evidence base to inform the public and policy discourse on sentencing.

"Sentencing Serious Sex Offenders provides a timely and unique analysis of sentencing law and practice for the most serious sexual offences in Ireland. Diarmuid Griffin’s volume represents a very significant contribution to the literature and offers much insight into the judicial response to sexual offending." Julian Roberts, University of Oxford and Executive Director of the Sentencing Academy

"I highly recommend this book, which provides an authoritative yet accessible analysis of judicial decision-making in serious sexual offence cases." Deirdre Healy, Director of the Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University College Dublin

"This is a serious analysis of a cohort of cases that present exceptional challenges to sentencing judges. Dr Griffin has illuminated both the nature of such crimes and the response of judges. His methodology serves as a template for other scholars." Mr Justice Peter Charleton, Supreme Court of Ireland
“Sentencing offenders convicted of serious sexual violence is something everyone has an opinion on, but about which very little is actually known. This engaging book based on original research addresses this knowledge gap. It will be a reference point for lawyers, policy makers, activists and academics for years to come.” Sinéad Ring, Maynooth University
"Sentencing Serious Sex Offenders is so much more than a fascinating, systematic analysis of judicial practices in the most contentious of cases. It is also an engaging invitation to explore the ecosystem of judicial sentencing: a complex network of actors, relationships, structures and institutions. With admirable clarity, Griffin reveals how judges apply rules in difficult cases to arrive at an outcome to satisfy a range of competing interests. For these reasons, this rich, multi-layered and nuanced work will appeal not only to lawyers, students and criminologists in Ireland, but to scholars of judicial decision-making world-wide." Cyrus Tata, University of Strathclyde

Diarmuid Griffin is Lecturer in criminal law at the University of Galway.

1. The Apex of Seriousness

2. Getting to Guidance

3. Deconstructing Sentences

4. Sentencing Crimes Committed Against Adult Victims

5. Sentencing Crimes of Child Sexual Abuse

6. Factoring in Judges

7. Conclusion

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