A 75-year-old former Christian Brother has been sentenced to 12 months in jail for indecently assaulting six children over 40 years ago.
Diarmuid Ó Luanaigh, from Bettyglen, Raheny, Dublin, pleaded guilty last month at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to ten sample charges of indecently assaulting the children in two schools in Dublin on dates between September 1965 and April 1972.
Four of the assaults took place in a primary school where Ó Luanaigh was a maths teacher.
Other assaults took place when Ó Luanaigh, who was known as Brother Cyril, became principal of a secondary school in 1970.
Judge Katherine Delahunt said she was satisfied a custodial sentence was appropriate.
She said she took into account a report from the Granada Institute that said Ó Luanaigh was at a very low risk of reoffending.
The court heard that he had now accepted responsibility and understood the harm his crimes had caused.
However, Judge Delahunt said she noted the serious nature of the crimes and his very late plea of guilty.
She said she was also taking into account the effect his crimes had on his victims, along with Ó Luanaigh's gross breach of trust.
Judge Delahunt told him he had been in a position of power in both schools, which he had abused.
She sentenced him to 12 months in jail on each count to run concurrently.
The maximum sentence for each count would have been two years.
One of the victims told gardaí that Ó Luanaigh would call him to the front of the class when he was between eight and ten years old.
He would sit him on his knee and assault him while the other children in the class were present.
The man said they could not see the abuse and thought he was getting special treatment for being a good pupil.
In a victim impact report, another man said he had become withdrawn, anxious and depressed after suffering the abuse and had tried to report him to the church authorities with no success.
The court heard last month that Ó Luanaigh had joined the Christian Brothers at 13.
He left the order in 1972 and went on to marry and have three children.
His counsel told the court he had led a 'blameless life' since leaving the brothers.
