A man who struck his wife in the face with a suitcase in front of their children during a family holiday has been jailed.
The 44-year-old Dublin man, who cannot be named to protect his victim's anonymity, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm in August 2020.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court previously heard that the couple were on holiday with their three small children, when the man hit the victim in the face with a suitcase, leaving her with a scar.
The man told gardaí he intended to flip the suitcase to empty it, and it was “100 per cent an accident” that she was struck.
He pleaded guilty on a trial date, after a proposal was made to the Director of Public Prosecutions, who accepted his plea on the basis of recklessness.
Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin handed the man a 16-month sentence on Tuesday, having considered the facts of the case, the aggravating features and mitigation.
She suspended the final 12 months on strict conditions and directed the man to place himself under the supervision of the Probation Services. He must also engage with anger management and domestic violence focused work.
Judge Ní Chúlacháin wished the victim and her children the best and expressed the court's hope they can now “start to move on” with their lives. She commended the woman for reading the victim impact statement herself during a previous sitting, which the judge described as “very moving” and “helpful” to the court in reaching sentence.
At a previous hearing, the woman said she was on a family holiday and “should have been safe”. She described their children's upset at seeing the incident.
In her victim impact evidence, the woman said she felt humiliated and horrified that the children witnessed a “vicious attack” by their father on their mother. She said she worries about the long-term impact on them.
She said she was unable to seek immediate medical attention as she wanted to get herself and the children away as the man was “in a rage”.
The woman told the court she was left with a visible scar and wears thick make-up to avoid questions from other people. She said the scar is a “constant reminder” of what happened.
The court heard the couple's relationship had been strained for some time before this incident, as they were both involved in a small business while working and parenting three very young children.
A local garda told Derek Cooney BL, prosecuting, that the family travelled to a hotel in the south of the country and that the couple had had several disagreements the night before the assault occurred.
The following morning, the victim went for a coffee, leaving the children and the man in the hotel room watching TV. She returned as they were due to go for a swim, but the man was annoyed that she had left.
She started to pack their suitcases while the man was on his phone. She asked him to help, and he initially ignored her, before attempting to flip the suitcase.
He then lifted the suitcase and pushed it towards her face, causing a wound between her nose and lip, which bled heavily.
The woman got towels from the bathroom and sent the man to get ice and pay the bill. He did this, then left the room again.
When the bleeding stopped, the woman wrapped a scarf around the lower part of her face. She left the hotel with the bags and their children, then drove back to Dublin. The man travelled separately.
The victim went to her father's home, then later to Beaumont Hospital, where the wound was stitched up.
A medical report was submitted to the court.
The woman made a complaint to gardaí several months later. When interviewed, the man said what had happened was an accident. He has no previous convictions.
The garda agreed with Jane Murphy BL, defending, that the man spoke with a solicitor on the phone, but declined to have one present during interview.
The man told gardaí that his wife was “giving out” to him, and he went to flip the suitcase to empty its contents.
He said it was “100 per cent an accident” that she was hit, and he had apologised immediately.
The garda agreed with Ms Murphy that the man gestured during the interview to indicate how he was trying to flip the suitcase.
Ms Murphy said her client acknowledges his actions were “inexcusable” and he has “apologised over and over again”.
She told the court that the man's mother was receiving palliative care at the time of this incident and died shortly afterwards. The small business was also under pressure, due to the impact of the Covid pandemic.
Ms Murphy asked the court to take into account the State's acceptance that the man did not intend to cause harm, but rather had acted recklessly.
She noted the presence of the couple's children was an aggravating factor in this case. The man later left the family home as the marriage had permanently broken down, and he has regular access to the children.
A letter from a psychotherapist was handed in to the court.
Ms Murphy said the man was anxious to remain in the community and asked the court for as much leniency as possible for her client.
Reading her impact evidence, the woman said she remains scared of the man and was afraid to return to the family home for several months after the incident, even though he had moved out.
She said she attends counselling and has been prescribed anti-depressants. She also described feelings of shame, embarrassment and having confidence and trust issues following the assault.
The woman said she has used up her sick leave entitlements due to stress and anxiety since the assault and worries about her ability to support herself and the children if she has to take further time off work.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can contact Women’s Aid (24-hour freephone helpline at 1800-341 900, email helpline@womensaid.ie) or Men’s Aid Ireland (confidential helpline at 01-554 3811, email hello@mensaid.ie) for support and information.
Safe Ireland also offers a number of local services and helplines at safeireland.ie/get-help/where-to-find-help/. In the case of an emergency, always dial 999/112
