A teenager wrecked a room in a juvenile detention room two months after he was given a life sentence for murder.
The 17-year-old boy pleaded guilty to causing €3,670 worth of criminal damage in the Oberstown detention facility on July 13th last year.
Judge Brendan Toale heard at the Dublin Children’s Court that the teenager damaged a television, a games console, and a couch and that repair work needed to be carried out.
Counsel said his client "flipped" because he had a dispute with his girlfriend, and the detention centre staff were not sympathetic.
The court heard child neglect had been an issue in the youth’s life.
Life in detention
Judge Toale was aware of the teen’s existing sentence. He also heard the youth was doing the Leaving Certificate and “making progress”.
He said any sanction he would impose would not add to the teen's time in custody, as he recorded a conviction with a concurrent three-month sentence.
Last year, the youth was sentenced to life in detention with a review after eight years.
In that case, he admitted to murdering Claudio Robu. The Romanian man, 39, was kicked to death by the youth on a laneway off Madison Road, South Circular Road, Dublin 8, on September 14th, 2020.
While on remand pending his murder case, the youth was prosecuted after he and another boy "barricaded" themselves in a room and threatened staff for several hours.
They used planks to smash a door and television for no reason.
It ended when gardaí intervened.
In an earlier case, the court heard the boy had been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, but it went untreated.
The juvenile court was told he had experienced a violent childhood and was abandoned.
He was exposed to cannabis from a very young age but is now drug-free.
