Former priest Richard Brennan, originally from Rathfarnham, Ireland, but now living and working in the US, was sentenced Monday to eight years in prison for raping his own sisters

The victims, Yvonne Crist, Paula Fay and Catherine Wrightstone all waived their anonymity so that he can be identified, saying their brother ‘cared more about his reputation and his perverted needs’ than their welfare

Brennan, 64, pled guilty to raping and indecently assaulting his sister Paula Fay when she was between 15 and 17

He admitted to rape and indecent assault of his sister Catherine Wrightstone when she was between nine and 13, as well as indecently assaulting a third sister, Yvonne Crist, when she was 20 and he was 18

He changed his plea to guilty after all three of the sisters had testified at the Central Criminal Court and two of them had been cross-examined

Ordained in 1989, Richard Brennan left the priesthood in 1992 after meeting and marrying his wife, Bridget, in the US and having three children, – the assaults happened while he was a seminarian

These offenses the court heard were part of a pattern of frequent assaults by the defendant over a lengthy period of time

Judge David Keane noted Fay and Wrightstone being particularly young and vulnerable when the offenses occurred as aggravating factors

Last month Richard’s older brother, Bernard Brennan, 67, was sentenced to four and a half years in prison for the sexual abuse of Crist and Fay

The victims have expressed their disappointment with the sentence imposed on their brother, believing it is not long enough to reflect the severity of his crimes

Former priest Richard Brennan [photo], has been jailed for eight years for raping and sexually assaulting his three sisters while he was a seminarian. Court heard these were part of a pattern of frequent assaults by Richard on his sisters over a lengthy period of time

Former priest, Richard Brennan, who pled guilty to incestuous assaults – raping and sexually assaulting his sisters while he was a seminarian, on Monday was sentenced to serve eight years in jail by the Central Criminal Court in Dublin, Ireland.
The victims, Yvonne Crist, Paula Fay and Catherine Wrightstone all waived their anonymity so that he can be identified, saying their brother ‘cared more about his reputation and his perverted needs’ than their welfare
Brennan, 64, originally from Rathfarnham in Ireland, now lives and works in the US. He was ordained as a priest in 1989 and later moved to the US in the 1990s where he married and has three children
At trial he pled guilty to raping and indecently assaulting his sister Paula Fay when she was between 15 and 17 years old.
Next he pled guilty to raping and indecently assaulting Catherine Wrightstone when she was between nine and 13 years old and admitted to indecently assaulting a third sister, Yvonne Crist, when she was 20 and he was 18.

Richard Brennan’s sisters Paula Fay and Catherine Wrightstone, waived their rights to anonymity so that their brother and childhood sexual tormentor could be named while justice is served

The ex-priest only changed his plea to guilty after all three of the sisters, who waived their right to anonymity to allow Brennan to be named, testified at the Central Criminal Court. Two of the plaintiffs had been cross-examined before the admission of guilt.
The court heard that Richard Brennan told Fay when she was 14 or 15 that she would be doing him a favor by having sex with him as he would not be able to have sex with any girl because he was going to be a priest.
He was around three years older than Fay when the abuse started and around ten years older than Wrightstone.
He subsequently left the priesthood in the early 1990s after meeting his future wife in the US.
Judge David Keane said the aggravating factors were that Fay and Wrightstone were particularly young and vulnerable when the offenses took place.
He said the offenses against them were part of a pattern of frequent assaults by Richard Brennan over a lengthy period of time, adding that incestuous assaults took place in their family home which should have been a place of safety and security but instead was a place of fear, anxiety and confusion caused by the actions of Brennan.
He said it was an abuse of trust and each of the three sisters had been psychologically damaged by the offenses.
Judge Keane said that even though some of the offenses occurred when Brennan was himself under 18, the majority took place when he was an adult and was also asserting “the moral probity and maturity of a seminarian”.
He said in mitigation he took into account Brennan’s change of plea, a letter he had written indicating remorse, his cooperation with gardaí and the fact that he had no other convictions.
He said he also took into account the fact that he was 64 years old and answering for his criminal conduct “at substantial remove” from when it occurred.
The judge imposed a global sentence of nine years and suspended the final year.
The defendant’s older brother, Bernard Brennan, 67, similarly was jailed in June for 4½ years after he was convicted for the sexual abuse of his sisters Crist and Fay.
Bernard Brennan, 67, pled guilty to 11 counts of indecent assault against Fay and Crist between 1972 and 1975. Fay was seven and Crist was 13 when Bernard first abused them.

Paula Fay [center], flanked by her sister Catherine Wrightstone [left], following the sentencing expressed their extreme disappointment, believing the sentence is not long enough to reflect the severity of his crimes

Judge David Keane praised the sisters’ courage and impressive strength of character.
He said he had immense admiration for all three of them and the determination they had shown in dealing with the psychological harm inflicted on them and in engaging and persevering with the legal process.
He said he hoped they would draw further strength from Brennan’s belated acceptance of guilt.
In powerful victim impact statements read to the court last month, Fay said she felt incapable, inferior and invisible, “a child with no voice, power and no sense of worth”.
She said the psychological impact of her brother’s “relentless and enduring” abuse had been profound and the aftermath had followed her through her life.
Catherine Wrightstone said she had broken her silence when she was 12 years old, after the abuse began when she was nine, but she said the system failed her and her parents failed her as they chose to believe her brother over her.
She said she had internalized blame for the abuse and attempted to take her own life in her early 20s.
She said she lived with the trauma every single day.
Yvonne Crist, who gave evidence via video link from the US, outlined a history of mental illness and an eating disorder and said she had been re-traumatized by the trial.
Addressing the media outside court, Fay said they were extremely disappointed with the sentence imposed and did not feel it was long enough to reflect the severity of Brennan’s crimes.
Fay feels justice has not been truly served and the sentence did not send the right message to offenders of this type of crime, said she.
Still it was still a monumental day in that their brother was being held accountable for the sexual abuse he inflicted on his siblings. While no prison sentence was every long enough for rape or sexual abuse, eight years would give Richard time to reflect on the real impact of his horrific crimes and the effect it had throughout their lives, she said.
Wrightstone said Brennan could no longer hide behind the mantle of the church “masking menace with meekness and depravity with sanctity”.
Fay who revealed that the sisters had chosen to waive their right to anonymity not for publicity but so other survivors would know they were not alone. Justice may take decades but was never beyond reach, she said, urging survivors of sexual abuse to come forward.