{"id":302653,"date":"2026-07-22T09:09:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T09:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/302653\/"},"modified":"2026-07-22T09:09:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T09:09:12","slug":"queens-medical-student-21-speaks-out-on-sickening-light-sentence-to-man-who-bit-her-spat-on-her-and-nearly-strangled-her","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/302653\/","title":{"rendered":"Queen\u2019s medical student (21) speaks out on \u2018sickening\u2019 light sentence to man who bit her, spat on her and nearly strangled her"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Co Fermanagh<\/a> woman \u201csickened\u201d at the sentence handed out to a man who subjected her to a brutal assault, including strangulation, has warned it could put off other victims of violence from coming forward.<\/p>\n

Medical student Cl\u00edodhna Martin feels \u201cbadly let down\u201d by the justice system after the 21-year-old watched the man who put her through hours of violence and fear was jailed for just eight months for non-fatal strangulation.<\/p>\n

She has bravely waived her anonymity following the trial of Eoin McKervey, who was sentenced earlier this month at Belfast Crown Court after attacking her at his student accommodation in Belfast after meeting his victim on a night out.<\/p>\n

McKervey (23), of Killykappy Road in Lack, Co Fermanagh, was handed 24 months for non-fatal strangulation \u2013 which became an offence in Northern Ireland in 2023 \u2013 eight of which will be served behind bars with the remainder on licence.<\/p>\n

\"Tyrone<\/a>\"DUP<\/a>\"EoinEoin McKervey put his victim through hours of abuse after she shared a taxi to his house in Belfast’s Holylands area in February 2023 <\/p>\n

He was also sentenced to six months, to run concurrently, for five counts of common assault.<\/p>\n

McKervey, who denied all charges, was acquitted of three counts of rape and three sexual assaults.<\/p>\n

Cl\u00edodhna continues to maintain she was raped and sexually assaulted during her ordeal in February 2024 when she was just 19, and says she is \u201cabsolutely devastated\u201d at the outcome of the trial.<\/p>\n

She has also questioned why the sentencing, which she believes is lenient, has not been brought forward to the Court of Appeal.<\/p>\n

Now having completed her third year of a medical degree at Queen\u2019s University, Cl\u00edodhna has courageously spoken out about getting on with her life in the aftermath of the nightmarish attack at the hands of a fellow student, who had attended Ulster University.<\/p>\n

The twisted attacker was not found guilty of any sexual offence \u2013 an outcome she says will \u201cleave a lasting effect on me\u201d.<\/p>\n

Cl\u00edodhna told the Irish News of how she watched McKervey\u2019s trial, and gave evidence at it, via Skype so she did not have to face the man who put her through \u201chell\u201d on what was supposed to have been an enjoyable night out for her friend\u2019s birthday.<\/p>\n

Then living at Queen\u2019s halls of residence, Cl\u00edodhna went to a Belfast nightclub where she met McKervey, whom she knew of from back home in Fermanagh, but had never properly met.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got chatting to a different boy in my course, and got separated from my friends,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt some stage I got talking to Eoin McKervey. My friend later told me he had been hanging about watching while I was talking to this other fella.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew of him. We had been in group situations before, never had a one-on-one conversation, but he was in the same year in school as my older brother.\u201d<\/p>\n

After chatting, the pair kissed, and Cl\u00edodhna agreed to share a taxi back to McKervey\u2019s Holylands<\/a> accommodation, close to her friend\u2019s house where she was planning to stay.<\/p>\n

She told McKervey she was looking to go back to her friend\u2019s house, and was not interested in taking things further with him. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe was very aware of what my intentions were \u2013 I was making it clear I wasn\u2019t interested in anything happening. I was on my period that night, I said that to him \u2013 so that he wouldn\u2019t try anything.”<\/p>\n

McKervey had initially been friendly, insisting Cl\u00edodhna could wait in his house until she made contact with her friend.<\/p>\n

\u201cEoin had been like, you can come in here, everything\u2019s really chill \u2013 he was being really normal at that stage,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

\"ClíodhnaCl\u00edodhna was left with bruises and bite marks after her ordeal at the hands of Eoin McKervey <\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t until we were behind closed doors, completely one-on-one in his bedroom that he got aggressive.\u201d<\/p>\n

She described how McKervey\u2019s \u201cwhole demeanour changed\u201d and he started making unwelcome advances, despite her previous insistence she was not interested in sexual activity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told him, \u2018look, I\u2019ve already told you I\u2019m not going to do anything\u2019,\u201d she said, adding he turned aggressive, and \u201cwent on to do whatever he wanted\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe more I resisted, the more violent he became,\u201d said Cl\u00edodhna, who was trapped in his bedroom.<\/p>\n

She was subjected to repeated strikes and bites, and was spat upon by the brutish McKervey.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe would say, \u2018I\u2019m going to do this, and if you flinch, I\u2019m going to hit you again\u2019,\u201d Cl\u00edodhna said of her ordeal, which lasted through the early hours of the morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe started spitting in my face. He told me to open my eyes, and – he specifically said these words – he said \u2018I\u2019m going to spit in your eyes\u2019, and if I closed them he was going to hit me across the face again.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only way I can describe how I felt is numb \u2013 I couldn\u2019t really believe what was happening to me. I was disassociated.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe put his hands around my neck and began choking me. I thought, is he going to kill me here?<\/p>\n

\u201cAt one stage he left the room and told me not to move. He came back with something – the only way I can describe it was it felt like ice, but was plastic.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe used that object on me, doing anything that would cause me pain and discomfort.\u201d<\/p>\n

McKervey would \u201cstop and start\u201d throughout the night.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought he was going to leave me alone, but he would start again,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis demeanour was the same throughout. He knew from the start I wasn\u2019t ok with any of this, but I think that made him want to do it more.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe had me hold my hands above my head, and he would bite down on me really hard and say if I flinched at that, he would hit me again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cl\u00edodhna was left with \u201cbruises all over my face and the top of my body\u201d and a burst lip.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the morning, he asked, \u2018did I do that to you\u2019, in a mocking way, and just burst out laughing. There was no remorse or anything,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe told me that morning he was a sociopath and that when he got angry, he got really angry \u2013 all this sort of talk.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought he was trying to intimidate me more, to make me scared to leave.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cl\u00edodhna eventually got a response via text from her friend, and asked her to collect her in her car.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought that would be the safest thing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember sprinting down the stairs, and he ran after me. I remember the fear that he wasn\u2019t going to let me leave.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got into my friend\u2019s car and she brought me back to her house. I only told her bits and pieces as I was in total shock. In my mind at that stage I just wanted to blank it out.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember I kept talking about this uni presentation I had that day, which sounds silly now, but I think I was just trying to get my mind to focus on one thing, to not think about what happened.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t think about going to the police that day because I was still in shock.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more: Judge tells man \u2018anyone accused of strangulation – particularly a woman – shouldn\u2019t be walking the streets\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Cl\u00edodhna went back to her family home on the Friday, and told her parents what had happened.<\/p>\n

The police were called, and she was taken to the Rowan sexual assault referral centre<\/a> in Antrim.<\/p>\n

McKervey was eventually arrested, charged and released on bail, but Cl\u00edodhna said she was afraid to go out in case she crossed his path. <\/p>\n

McKervey continued to play for his local GAA team in Fermanagh, and Cl\u00edodhna\u2019s brother endured having to face him in a match against his own local club.<\/p>\n

Eight months after the attack, while out for another friend\u2019s birthday, she saw McKervey at the bar of a nightclub. <\/p>\n

\u201cI froze in place. He walked away, and I remember thinking, did I just imagine him there because I\u2019m so afraid of him that I\u2019m hallucinating?\u201d<\/p>\n

She immediately left with the help of friends who swiftly ushered her past McKervey and out into a taxi.<\/p>\n

Cl\u00edodhna had continued with her studies following the attack, but says it has \u201caffected my whole uni experience\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u201cEspecially with Belfast, I just hate being up there now, and I never really feel safe. It\u2019s ruined that for me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

McKervey\u2019s trial got underway last November, but was impacted by the barristers\u2019 strike that led to prolonged delays in almost 2,500 cases.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was asked by the prosecutor, \u2018do you like hitting girls\u2019 and he said yes, but tried to make out that it came from me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the prosecutor asked him if this was stuff you liked to do, these ideas all came from you, you never asked Cl\u00edodhna to do any of these things, he admitted that all came from him.\u201d<\/p>\n

The jury convicted McKervey of non-fatal strangulation and common assault.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was shocked he was found guilty of that level of violence, but yet they weren\u2019t sure beyond reasonable doubt that any sexual activity wasn\u2019t consensual \u2013 I found that hard to understand,” she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey saw my injuries. They accepted I was strangled, wasn\u2019t able to breathe and in fear for my life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really feel the system has badly let me down. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat can a girl in this situation do? If she can get beat up like that, but it\u2019s claimed the rest is all consensual?<\/p>\n

\u201cI was sickened, and absolutely devastated with the outcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

His sentencing earlier this month was the one time Cl\u00edodhna faced him in the courtroom<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he got to walk out of that court I knew I would be in a really bad way, so I didn\u2019t decide on going until the day itself,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I was shocked at the sentence. I was happy in a sense he was going into custody, and wasn\u2019t walking out with a suspended sentence. But he only got two years, and is only serving eight months. I couldn\u2019t believe it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She was advised there would be no opportunity to take the sentence before the Court of Appeal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have offered to have a meeting to explain in more detail, but it was borderline in terms of unduly lenient,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

\u201cEven with the sentence he got, I don\u2019t understand why he was only given the eight months behind bars instead of 12.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe might be back in Belfast for my final year in uni.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"FermanaghCl\u00edodhna Martin says she feels justice has not been done after her attacker was sentenced earlier this month PICTURE: MAL MCCANN <\/p>\n

She said non-fatal strangulation, which can carry a maximum sentence of 14 years \u201cwas such a big deal when it was introduced as an offence, but I feel my case undermines all that good work\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnybody looking at this \u2013 if you\u2019re going to make a policy like this, but not have appropriate sentences, how are you going to deter anyone?” she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a lasting psychological effect on the victim.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe big thing for me was that if I could get an adequate result from this, then I could turn around to another girl who went through something similar and say, go forward as you\u2019ll get justice for it, but now I just feel, is it worth it, for what you went through?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the unfairness of it that would honestly make it harder for me to encourage someone else.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t believe justice has been done at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the Public Prosecution Service said: \u201cThe prosecution team, including Senior Counsel, carefully considered the sentence imposed in this case. <\/p>\n

\u201cIn all the circumstances, it was determined that the sentence passed did not meet the threshold in order to be referred to the Court of Appeal as potentially unduly lenient. <\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing this, the victim was informed of this decision by police and was offered the opportunity to meet with Senior Counsel to receive a more detailed explanation should she wish to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n

They added: \u201cThis was a deeply distressing case, which was prosecuted robustly by the PPS.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe commend the victim for reporting her experiences to police and for the courage and resilience she demonstrated throughout the criminal justice process.\u201d <\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the Office of the Lady Chief Justice said it was not appropriate to comment on sentences imposed in individual cases.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile the offence of non-fatal strangulation carries a maximum sentence of 14 years\u2019 imprisonment when prosecuted on indictment in the Crown Court, there is no prescribed minimum sentence,\u201d they said. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe sentence imposed in any individual case will depend upon the particular facts and circumstances of that case and the application of the relevant sentencing principles.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Co Fermanagh woman \u201csickened\u201d at the sentence handed out to a man who subjected her to a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":302654,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[15970,114687,114685,9,24,63,114686,122,124,123],"class_list":["post-302653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-belfast","tag-co-fermanagh","tag-holylands","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-psni","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=302653"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302653\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/302654"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=302653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=302653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=302653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}