CHRISTOPHER SIMM FROM DONAGHADEE SENTENCED FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT ON TEENAGE GIRL IN COUNTY DOWN

In July 2022, a disturbing case involving Christopher Simm from Donaghadee, County Down, drew significant public and judicial attention due to the nature of his crimes and the sentencing outcome. Simm, who was involved in a serious sexual assault against a 14-year-old girl, was sentenced to a mere eight months in prison, a decision that has been met with widespread criticism from the victim’s family and legal observers alike.

The victim’s sister, who chose to remain anonymous to protect her sister’s identity, expressed her outrage at the leniency of the sentence. She criticized the decision to prosecute Simm in the petty sessions court rather than the Crown Court, where he could have faced a more severe penalty. She stated, “Eight months is not enough, it’s far from enough but for him to then appeal that, it’s a slap in the face for my sister! The PPS have effectively slapped her in the face too because while we don’t know what the sentence would have been in the Crown Court, it certainly would have been a lot more than what DJ Hamill gave him.”

Just days before his scheduled trial earlier this year, Simm, who previously resided at Victoria Court in Donaghadee, entered guilty pleas to two counts of sexual assault against the young girl, which occurred on September 5, 2020. The court heard that the incident took place on a beach in Donaghadee, where the girl was accompanied by a friend. During this encounter, Simm was under the influence of alcohol and drugs, which contributed to the disturbing events that unfolded.

A prosecutor detailed how Simm approached the girl and her friend, asking the friend to wait around the corner. Once the friend was out of sight, Simm began to behave inappropriately, pulling at the girl’s trousers and making lewd comments, calling her “sexy” and suggesting she was “asking for it.” The girl told him to stop, describing his behavior as “weird,” but Simm continued his assault when her friend returned briefly. He then started kissing her cheeks and, in a further act of misconduct, handed her a bottle of Buckfast to hold while he urinated in an alleyway. During this time, he also asked her to “hold his penis,” which she refused, but he nonetheless slapped her on the bottom as they walked away.

Later, inside Simm’s property, the girl sought refuge in the bathroom to call her friend. However, she realized Simm could hear her and began banging on the door. When she emerged, he forced her onto the sofa, where he knelt between her legs and started kissing her jaw and biting her neck. The girl was overwhelmed with emotion and began to cry, at which point Simm stopped and apologized, making her swear on his children’s lives that she would not tell anyone about what had happened. Fortunately, the police were contacted the following day, leading to Simm’s arrest.

During police interviews, Simm claimed to have no recollection of the incident, citing an eight-month binge of alcohol and drug abuse as a possible reason for his amnesia. He insisted that the assault could not have occurred, despite the evidence against him. The court was informed that Simm faced a maximum sentence of six months in the magistrates’ court but could have been sentenced to up to ten years if tried in the Crown Court.

Judge DJ Hamill expressed his frustration with the sentencing process, stating, “That’s the difference, that’s the outrage I feel in this case.” He emphasized his experience of over twenty-five years in the judiciary and his shock at the severity of the case, which he described as unprecedented in magistrates’ court. The judge highlighted that because Simm admitted guilt, the sentence would be lower, estimating around four months, meaning he could be released in about eight weeks.

Despite the leniency, DJ Hamill ordered Simm to stand and condemned his actions as “appalling behavior towards this child.” He remarked that Simm should have been tried in the Crown Court, where he could have faced a much longer sentence. Simm was sentenced to four months for each of the two counts, to run consecutively, totaling eight months. Additionally, he was ordered to sign the police sex offenders register for ten years and was placed under a five-year Sexual Offences Prevention Order. Although initially detained, Simm was later released on bail while he considered appealing the sentence.