Barbara Naughton (born 1979) is an Irish author and rape victim.
Naughton, a native of Kinvarra, Camus, Connemara, became a central figure in a political and legal incident in Ireland in 2002. Bobby Molloy, TD for Galway West for the previous 37 years, made an intervention in the case of the serial rape of Barbara Naughton by her father, Patrick Naughton, over a period a nine years. The was of a particularly horrific nature. Patrick Naughton was tried between the 22nd and the 31st of October, 2001, and found guilty. While Naughton was awaiting sentence, an official in Bobby Molloy's office made a phone call to Judge Philip O'Sullivan enquiring about correspondence from Naughton's sister. The judge also received a call from the dept. of Justice asking whether he'd take a call at home from Molloy later in the evening. Judge O'Sullivan said he would not and terminated the phone call.
In Court the Judge drew attention to the phone calls. Molloy announced his resignation as Minister and announced his decision not to fight the next election. In time it became clear that he had written repeated letters to the Minister of Justice asking for updates on unspecified requests from the defendant's sister in relation to the case. There followed an exchange of fifteen letters between Ministers Molloy and O'Donoghue in which the Minister for Justice had finally to point out that he could have no role in a case which was being tried by the independent judiciary.
TG4's Scannal investigates Naughton's story in a programme broadcast in 2002, during which Naughton, for the first time, describe her father's crimes and her subsequent life.