The SDLP has said there can be no repeat of an incident where a Derry councillor supplied a reference to an Irish soldier jailed for rape.
Brian Tierney apologised for giving the reference to Kielan Mooney and said he withdrew it when he became aware of the charges the soldier was facing.
His party will carry out a review of what happened, saying there can be “no excuse” for Mr Tierney’s actions.
Mooney (30), of Bloomfield Park in Derry, was jailed for eight-and-a-half years earlier this month for raping a woman, who was a member of the Irish Defence Forces, in a Dublin hotel in July 2021.
Affidavits were given in court as character references for Mooney, with some stating that he was a good father to his five children.
However, during his sentencing, the court heard that two women gave statements disputing the affidavits.
The judge said Mooney’s duties as a father were “grossly overstated” and he would not be suspending any of Mooney’s sentence.
Kielan Mooney (30) of Bloomfield Park, Derry, was convicted following a trial at the Central Criminal Court last December
Regarding the reference he gave, Mr Tierney said he was “not aware of the details of the charges” when he wrote it.
In a statement to BBC NI, Mr Tierney said: “It was a huge error of judgment on my part to issue this personal statement and something I profoundly regret.”
He added: “I withdrew the statement when I became aware of the nature of the charges but accept it was a serious failing on my part not to establish the details before writing the statement.
“I offer sincere apologies to the victim in this awful case and anyone who has been affected by my actions.
“I will do everything possible to learn from this experience going forward.”
When contacted by the Belfast Telegraph, the councillor said he would be providing no further comment.
The SDLP said Mr Tierney’s actions “were entirely wrong and he has accepted he made a grave error of judgment”.
“There is no excuse for giving a character reference for any case involving a crime of this nature,” a party spokesperson said.
“The SDLP supports the removal of the use of character references in courts, particularly in cases involving gender-based violence.
“The views of individuals have no place in determining the outcome of a criminal case.”
News Catch Up – Sunday 26 January
The statement added: “Following this incident, we will be carrying out a review and issuing guidance on representations and references to all elected representatives so that they understand the challenges that victims face in getting justice in cases of gender-based violence and the traumatising impact these references can have.
“We will be making every effort to ensure there is no repeat of this in future.”
In December of last year, Kielan Mooney was found guilty of three counts of rape and one count of sexual assault at Dublin’s Central Criminal Court.
The woman in the case gave a victim impact statement in which said that the attack left her feeling suicidal.
“What happened changed my life, I wouldn’t wish it on anyone, no 21-year-old should go through this,” she said.
“Never in my life did I think that a man was to take something from me I could never get back.”