Man ‘would sacrifice’ his latest child for his other children, Kildare court told
GRAPHIC CONTENT WARNING
A man said that he 'would sacrifice' his latest child for his other children and their mother.
That’s the claim that was made in Naas District Court on Thursday, January 5, during an in-camera (in-private) court session, in which it was alleged that the man had breached a domestic violence order against him from his former partner.
The court was told by the mother of the man’s former partner that he had arrived at her home in Kildare in the early hours of the morning, and demanded to see her daughter.
Before she delivered testimony, the gardaí specifically requested the mother to only recount the events on the night in question, so as to avoid any instance of hearsay.
The mother said she went down to try and calmly speak with him, so as to avoid having her daughter and her grandchildren wake up to any noise he might have made.
As she spoke to him, the man, whom she said was heavily intoxicated at the time, enquired about whether or not his ex-partner 'had a new man in her life', and also said that he wanted to see her.
Following this, he showed the mother fresh cuts he did to himself on his arm, and also insisted that he 'would sacrifice' the latest child he had with his new partner for his ex-partner and their children.
The mother said the conversation lasted for 'between one hour and an hour-and-a-half', and he kept repeating himself during the conversation.
When her daughter awoke the next morning, the mother told her about the incident.
When her daughter took to the stand, she added that this made her feel 'extremely anxious and fearful.'
Defending solicitor Matthew Byrne said that, as a result of the breach, his client had been detained overnight in a garda station and was not interviewed.
He said that he 'did not think this was appropriate', and argued that the order only extended to the man’s ex-partner and their children, but not the mother (who is also the grandmother of the children).
Mr Byrne also said that while the woman may have felt intimidated, she only felt that way after having been informed about the incident by her mother.
However, Garda Sergeant Brian Jacob disagreed with this, and said that the order also covered 'the woman’s dependants.'
"She (the man’s ex-partner) did not have to be present, she was still put in fear," he added.
Sgt Jacob further said that he believed the mother of the woman 'took the correct course of action' on the night by chatting with the man so as to not alert her daughter or the children to his presence.
Commenting on the case, Judge Desmond Zaidan remarked that it was 'an unusual one'.
He said that while the order technically did not extend to the woman’s mother, he added that she was a witness to the event, and said that he had 'no doubt' that the conversation had taken place.
Judge Zaidan admitted that he had concerns about the man’s mental health, and so he ordered a probation report for the man.
He also urged him to seek help for his mental health.
The case will return to court for sentencing in May.