Freed sex offender back in jail
The man known as Mr A was returned to prison after the Irish government won an appeal against his release in the Supreme Court.
He was released on Tuesday after the same court struck down the law on statutory rape.
The court ruled the law was illegal because it did not allow the defence of a genuine mistake about a girl’s age.
An emergency bill to close the legal loophole has now passed both houses of the Irish parliament.
The Seanad voted to accept the legislation on Friday evening, while the Dail passed the bill earlier in the afternoon.
The bill came into effect when it was signed by President Mary McAleese.
The Supreme Court’s ruling almost certainly means that those other child sex offenders who had applied for release will now stay in prison.
On Tuesday, the ruling led to the release from jail of a man who had sex with a 12-year-old girl after plying her with alcohol.
However, a warrant has now been issued for him to be re-arrested.
Friday’s court verdict will come as a relief for the Irish government.
Some opposition politicians had been calling for the resignation of Justice Minister Michael McDowell over the affair.
They claimed he should have known about the Supreme Court challenge and been better prepared for its eventual outcome.
Until last week’s ruling, it was automatically a crime for a man to have sex with a girl under the age of 15, no matter what age he believed she was.
Following the ruling, legal experts quickly identified several further cases involving sex offenders currently behind bars who could be freed in the coming weeks.
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