Court drops €25,000 compensation for girl who had child at 13

An appeals court this morning partly overturned a lower court decision which had ordered a man to pay compensation of €25,000 to a girl whom he had defiled when she was 13-years old in 2001. The girl had had a baby as a result.

The lower court had condemned the man to a two-year jail term suspended for four years and ordered him to pay the family of the girl €25,000 in compensation.

In its judgement today, the Appeals Court noted that the man, who was 19 at the time of the incident, had insisted that the sex was consensual.

The girl had said that she had sex with the man in a football ground in Fgura. They had made their way in through a gap in the fence. The man had started groping her. She initially asked him to stop, and he did so. But he then started once more and she made no resistance, in order not to create trouble.

The court observed that the girl had said she had been out with several men before the accused, but it never resulted that she had sex with them, other than with the accused, which was her first time.

The accused had told the court that the girl told him she was 16 years old. But, the court said, at 16, the girl was still a minor.

The court observed that in an early stage of proceedings the accused had admitted to having defiled the girl but then withdrew his admission.

The Appeals Court confirmed the lower court decision finding the accused guilty of having defiled the girl.

It, however, withdrew the order for payment of compensation, saying this was a matter which should be decided by the Civil Court.

The suspended jail term was confirmed.