Woman jailed after making false allegation of sexual assault at Sligo University Hospital

A woman who made a false allegation that she had been sexually assaulted by a prison officer escorting her on a hospital visits has been jailed for 21 months.

Nicole Chambers (29) alleged the prison officer had assaulted her in a hospital cubicle.

CCTV from the hospital showed the male prison officer had never entered Chambers’ cubicle and remained outside as is protocol. His female colleague on the escort and medical staff also verified that he had been outside the cubicle the entire time.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Chambers has a complex psychiatric background and is currently in a wheelchair due to a functional neurological disorder. There is no service or facility in Ireland which can address her complex needs. Her defence counsel told the court there are no suitable services available in Ireland to assist her.

Chambers of Snee, Carragh, Coolaney, Sligo, pleaded guilty to making a false criminal complaint on August 15, 2020. She has 34 previous convictions and previously served a one-and-a-half-year sentence for making false reports imposed in 2021.

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After hearing evidence in the case last month, Judge Martin Nolan had adjourned the case overnight to consider his sentence. He said these were serious allegations which had a profound effect on the victim and only for the presence of a camera he may have ended up on trial.

He noted she had a background of making false allegations and had served a custodial sentence, but it appeared the punitive nature of that had not addressed her issues.

When the case was called later that week, counsel for Chambers told the court she was not present and asked the court to adjourn the case to the following Monday.

A bench warrant was later issued after Chambers failed to appear on that date. That warrant was executed today (Wed) before Judge Nolan.

Judge Nolan said that Chambers’ allegation was “malicious and self-serving”. “It was a terrible allegation to make. I hope she is sorry for what she did,” he said.

He accepted that she had a complicated history and “certainly has a lot of challenges”. “She has endured a lot of trauma and distress”.

“But I have no doubt that she knows the difference between right and wrong and knew the allegation should cause him difficulty. Thankfully the footage proved that he had done no wrong,” Judge Nolan continued, before he jailed Chambers for 21 months.

Garda Andrew Harte told Aoife O’Leary BL, prosecuting, that gardai attended at the Dochas Centre in August 2020 after a complaint was made by Chambers that she had been sexually assaulted by a prison officer while being escorted to hospital.

Chambers made a detailed complaint to gardai and indicated she was willing to be examined at a Sexual Assault Treatment Unit. Gardai arranged for a forensic exam to take place.

She told gardai that she had been escorted by a male and female officer and once she was brought to a cubicle the female officer disappeared. She said the male officer entered her cubicle, said something to her and she gave a detailed account of how she alleged she was sexually assaulted.

She said he had also hurt her wrist after she grabbed his hand. She outlined how she had suffered fits and woke up in a different hospital after the seizures.

The court heard evidence that she had suffered fits while at the hospital and was transferred to Beaumont Hospital for further medical attention.

She said she was sick of being “targeted” by prison officers since she made the complaint. She said she had told a psychologist and her mother what had happened. The male officer told gardai he had never entered the cubicle and denied the allegation. His female colleague and medical staff confirmed he had not entered the cubicle.

Gardai suspected Chambers was making a false report and returned to the prison to interview her.

She told gardai that she was telling the truth and that’s what she remembered. She told gardai she would go to “extreme lengths” to prove she was telling the truth. She was shown the CCTV from the hospital.

Gardai were contacted in November 2020 to say Chambers wanted to speak to them and returned to the prison. She told them she wished to retract her statement due to her mental health and physical wellbeing. She said she wished to apologise to the prison officer and the prison service.

Gda Harte agreed with Jennifer Jackson BL, defending, that even when it could be clearly seen on CCTV that the prison officer did not enter the cubicle, Chambers had maintained her story

He agreed that apart from a couple of public order matters, she had not come to further attention.

Ms Jackson outlined that Chambers had suffered severe trauma in her childhood which had spilled into her adult life. She said Chambers has a complex psychiatric background and was suicidal at the time of this incident.

A victim impact report from the prison officer, who does not wish to be identified, was handed into court for the judge to read.

Ms Jackson said she was not creating a narrative that Chambers is the victim, she said the prison officer was the victim of this “horrendous allegation” and it has clearly had a terrible effect on him.

Ms Jackson handed in reports and letters for the Judge to consider, that were not read in open court. She outlined Chambers has mental health issues including an unstable personality disorder and has self-harmed and self-mutilates. She has a functional neurological disorder and is currently in a wheelchair as she has an inability to walk due to this disorder.

Ms Jackson said it appeared that there was no service or facility in Ireland which was able to address Chambers complex needs at present. She has had multiple psychiatric admissions.

She said Chambers is currently living in Sligo under the care of a multidisciplinary team and appears to be doing well. She has a support worker and is attending therapy. Counsel said Chambers has written a letter of apology and greatly regrets her actions.