Ballinasloe family feels only relief at justice after six decades

In 2024, she broke her silence by reporting to Portumna Garda Station that she had been sexually abused by her brother in the 1960s, when she was just ten and eleven and he was 15 and 16.

For Olivia, it was the moment she saw her mother reclaim her voice - a turning point that ultimately led to a conviction.

This week, Sean Monaghan (79), of The Harbour, Marketpoint, Mullingar, Co Westmeath, was jailed for three years after pleading guilty at the Central Criminal Court to eight counts of indecent assault committed against Julie Fogarty at their family home between 1962 and 1963.

“It’s not about me,” says Olivia. “I am not the victim. I am not my mam. It is about accountability and truth. Initially, she wasn’t believed. She was holding that feeling of not being believed in for so long. She carried this for a lifetime.

“Although this case happened many years ago, our brave mam deserved to be heard, and the court acknowledged what happened. We, as a family, are honoured to have represented our mam and to have helped ensure the truth was finally recognised.

“She wanted the truth to come out because she held it in for so many years. She wanted accountability, to give courage to other people, because she suffered in silence.”

Olivia accompanied her mother to Portumna Garda Station at the time and describes the support they received there as pivotal in bringing the case to trial.

In particular, she wants to thank Garda Mary Murphy and Sergeant William Cleary for “the dignity, professionalism and empathy they showed from the very beginning”.

“When she made her report in 2024, she said ‘my life starts now. I don’t care about a legal sentence; I know the truth is with the guards,’” Olivia explains.

“This is about her, her voice and the justice that she deserves. She reached out to the right people. She got the right support and that gave her the courage in the end.”

She also acknowledges the support they received from the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre in the run-up to, and during, the case, in particular Celine, Sarah, and Trish and Maria Dowling therapy.

While the sentence reflected the laws in place at the time, the conviction itself was what mattered most to Olivia. The case is about far more than a prison term.

“We care that he is convicted and the truth wins out,” says Olivia. “It was a bonus that he got three years. Justice cannot erase the past, but it affirms that it mattered.”

Olivia describes how Julie has lived a life of joy alongside grief and is “still tortured” by the childhood sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of her older brother.

In her victim impact statement to the court, Julie describes how she still wakes in the middle of the night in fear.

At sentencing, Justice Kerida Naidoo described the abuse itself as ‘painful and degrading’ and said it had a significant impact on Julie Fogarty throughout her life. Olivia knows firsthand the importance of family to her mother and how its erosion caused tremendous pain. “This is what destroyed her,” she says.

“She is such a family-oriented person. Going through this has been horrific but anyone who knows her knows the character that she is. She is the most amazing mother and grandmother. She minded all our kids, and still tries to, even though she is sick. Some of them call her nanny and some of them call her granny.

“She has the best personality ever. She is hilarious and would brighten up any room. She is all about fun. She would always go out of her way to put everyone else first and give you the shirt off her back.”

It is her strength and resilience, Olivia says, that has carried her through. Julie went on to work as a children’s nurse in Dublin, to marry, and have three children.

“She is strong,” she continues. “She moved to Dublin to be a children’s nurse, and it was her nursing background that gave her pride and joy.

“She had three children - myself and my two older brothers – and she is the most amazing mother to us. She gives us all strength. Even now, she is still trying to hold it together for all of us. She is the most caring person in the world.”

Olivia hopes her mother’s decision to speak out will encourage others to come forward sooner. The case is not only about justice for her mother, but about what it might mean for others still suffering in silence.

“All I hope is that it gives someone in mam’s situation the courage to speak up,” she says.

“I hope they don’t wait another 20 years to come forward. To every survivor of childhood sexual abuse: please never be afraid to use your voice.

“There is incredible support available - please don't suffer in silence as our mam did for so long.”