A man who was accused of raping his partner's toddler has been given a five-year sentence for reckless endangerment and for child cruelty towards her and her brother.
The 30-year-old Dublin man went on trial at the Central Criminal Court last June on 10 charges, including section 4 rape and sexual assault of the then 23-month-old girl, along with charges of reckless endangerment of her and child cruelty towards her and her brother in 2018.
He was their mother's partner, and the pair have a younger child together.
When the trial was at the closing stages, the man entered guilty pleas to the less serious offences of reckless endangerment and child cruelty, which were accepted by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), thereby bringing the trial to an end.
Both children – now aged seven and eight – gave evidence via video link at the trial, and their interviews with specialist gardaí were shown to the jury.
The man, who can't be named to protect the children's anonymity, pleaded guilty to one count of reckless endangerment of the girl on dates between March 29th, 2018 and April 5th, 2018.
He further pleaded guilty to two counts of child cruelty towards her and two counts of child cruelty towards her brother on April 5th, 2018. The boy was aged between two and three years old at the time of the alleged offences.
The remaining charges, including rape and sexual assault, were dropped by the DPP.
The trial heard the family was under the investigation of gardaí at the time of the offending and had been referred to Tusla in November 2017 after the girl, then aged 18 months, was taken to hospital covered in bruises. The mother is currently serving a five-year sentence for offences relating to the children.
Vulnerable and helpless
Sentencing the man on Friday, Mr Justice David Keane noted the extremely young age of the little girl in particular, her “profound vulnerability” and “helplessness” at the time of the offence. He said the serious injury she had sustained has caused “serious psychological harm” to the child.
He said the little boy remains anxious and has struggled to make sense of what happened to his little sister.
The judge noted that the children have come on very well in the care of their foster mother, but that they have a long recovery ahead of them. They are “strong and determined”, and she is hopeful they have a bright future ahead of them, the court heard. Mr Justice Keane said the court shares that wish.
In relation to the man, the judge noted he has a long history of offending and has expressed no wish to engage with the Probation Service. He has a long history of substance abuse and has expressed his intention to go back on crack cocaine upon his release.
In mitigation, the judge noted the man had entered guilty pleas and that the reckless endangerment plea was entered on the basis that the man left the girl in the care of her mother at the relevant time.
He handed down a five-year sentence, which he backdated to when the man went into custody in September 2021.
At an earlier sentence hearing, a local sergeant told Shane Costelloe SC, prosecuting, that on April 5th, 2018, a number of reports were made relating to concerns about the treatment of two children in a Dublin Shopping Centre.
On CCTV footage played in court, the man was seen roughly pulling the little girl to her feet as she fell on an escalator. It was also apparent from the footage that the children were left on their own for periods of time, including at one point when the man went into a shop outside the main shopping centre complex, and the children could be seen searching for him.
The gardaí were alerted by staff members at the centre, and officers followed the man. They found the children on their own outside a nearby apartment block.
The court heard the girl was covered in bruises, had a bloody nose and appeared unwell. The man emerged from another part of the apartment block and told gardaí he was in a relationship with the children’s mother and was acting as a parent for them.
The girl was taken to hospital at the behest of gardaí and social workers, who were already in contact with the family following the earlier hospitalisation.
On this occasion in hospital, she was discovered to have a “severe genital injury with perineal disruption”, medical experts told the trial. Doctors told the jury no explanation was given by her mother or the man as to how the injury had occurred.
Doctors said the injury could have become infected or developed into sepsis, if it had continued to be left untreated. The child may have medical complications in later life as a result of the injury.
The toddler also had an old fractured wrist injury that had gone untreated and was covered in bruises with some bite marks, the court heard. Both children were immediately taken into care in the wake of her hospitalisation.
The garda agreed with prosecution counsel that the wound could have become septic and could have led to serious consequences, including death if it had gone untreated.
One medical expert told the trial he could not say how the injuries occurred, but mentioned three possibilities – blunt force injuries, straddle injuries or penetrative injuries.
As a result, defence counsel argued that neither the medical evidence nor the testimony of the girl was able to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the genital injury was a result of penetration.
Mr Costelloe said the man had endangered the girl by leaving her in the company of her mother, and this was the charge which relates to the reckless endangerment.
Despite their extreme youth at the time of the offending, both children were interviewed by specialist gardaí about the allegations a couple of years later. The girl was interviewed shortly after her fourth birthday. The boy was interviewed when he was four and again when he was five.
The boy told gardaí the man was a “bold daddy”. “He didn't tell the truth,” the little boy said. “He hurted us.” He said the man hurt him and his sister “every day” and laughed about it.
The children’s 30-year-old mother previously pleaded guilty to two charges of reckless endangerment of the children on dates between April and November 2018. Five further counts of child cruelty were taken into consideration, including one count of her punching her son in the face.
She was jailed for five years by Judge Patricia Ryan at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court last year.
The man has 74 previous convictions. He has been in custody since August 2022.
'Horrendous abuse'
The foster mother of the two children read victim impact statements into the record. She said that when the children first came to her, they needed a lot of reassurance that they were safe.
“It was clear that they craved to just belong,” the woman said. She said there were many challenges to try and help the children recover “from the horrendous abuse they suffered at the hands of those that were supposed to protect them”.
She said both of the children “presented differently in how the trauma affected them” before she added: “They will need help to allow them to live the life they deserve. They both need a lot of nurturing and reassurance that they are safe.”
Speaking about the young boy, the woman said it was very clear when he first came to live with her family that he was extremely anxious as he was “always on high alert”. She said he didn’t feel comfortable with people behind him, and he would jump in fright.
She spoke of how when they suggested they play board games as a family, he replied: “Bold games, I don’t like bold games.”
She said the boy was struggling to make sense of what happened and would say of his younger sister: “I tried to help her, but I couldn’t, because I was hurt too”.
The woman said he showed signs of distress after meetings with his birth mother. She said the boy needed a lot of encouragement to speak about his feelings and still needs a lot of reassurance today.
“He has not only had his trauma to deal with but also his sister’s. His trust in adults is completely shattered,” the woman said.
Speaking about the little girl, she said when she first came to the family, she was, “a tiny little thing, very quiet and withdrawn with delayed speech”.
She also struggled after the access visits and would be quiet and withdrawn afterwards. She later began to refuse to attend the visits.
The woman said the children are more settled and confident now. “No doubt they have a very long recovery ahead of them. They are strong, and with the correct support, I am hopeful their future is bright.”
Seamus Clarke SC, defending, said his client accepts “his own behaviour was horrific”. He handed in a number of reports and said his client has a history of substance and alcohol abuse.
