A 26-year-old woman who falsely accused another resident at a homeless facility in Tralee, Co Kerry, of raping her has received a sentence of two years and six months.
The sentence has been suspended on foot of a positive probation report, and the fact that the woman has not come to attention since.
But Judge Thomas E O'Donnell warned Kerry Holt, at the Circuit Criminal Court in Tralee, that what she had done was "a very serious matter".
She would be under the probation service and any breach would see her back in court.
Ms Holt, of The White House B&B, Tralee, Co Kerry, pleaded guilty in February 2018, to knowingly making a false report or statement, contrary to the Criminal Law Act, 1976.
She and her then boyfriend were residing at Arlington Lodge, a homeless facility, when, on 24 October 2016, Ms Holt accused another resident of having raped her.
Gardaí attended the scene and a room at the hostel was sealed off.
Ms Holt was taken to the sexual assault treatment unit in Cork for examination.
She made a complaint in writing against the named individual at the hostel and gave "a detailed account of what had allegedly happened, that she had been forced to have sexual intercourse against her will", the court in Tralee heard at the finalisation of her sentencing.
However, Ms Holt's boyfriend did not believe her and within a short time went to the Garda Station in Tralee to express his doubts.
Within days she too had admitted her false allegation, Judge O'Donnell recalled.
In the meantime, Mr X, the man falsely accused of the rape, was deeply upset and embarrassed, and said at all times that what had occurred had been consensual.
"This was a very serious matter. An allegation of rape is a very serious allegation. Mr X was extremely anxious because of the rumours which had spread about him," Judge O'Donnell said.
Gardaí had reported how he was deeply concerned despite the fact she admitted her allegation was false at an early stage, the judge added.
She had "wasted the time of gardai and other services," Judge O'Donnell said.
Ms Holt had been homeless at the time. A probation report detailed a number of mental health issues and "a very difficult family dynamic", Judge O'Donnell said.
In July, in submissions, Ms Holt's barrister Katie O'Connell told the court how two years on from the incident, Ms Holt, originally from the UK, was now in a stable relationship and expecting a child.
Today, Judge O'Donnell said Ms Holt's circumstances appear to have improved and stabilised.
The "appropriate tariff" was two years and six months, Judge O'Donnell said, but he was prepared to suspend the jail sentence for a period of two years and six months on condition Ms Holt be of good behaviour and under the care and supervision of the Probation Service.
