Teenager born in prison spared custodial sentence for theft
The harrowing background was revealed when the now 18-year-old pleaded guilty to stealing €360 worth of clothes from a sportswear outlet in Tallaght, Dublin, on November 24th last.
He cannot be named because he was 17 at the time of the offence and a juvenile when charged.
At the Dublin Children's Court sentence hearing, Martin Dwan, defending, referred to the contents of a pre-sentence probation report and another from his guardian ad litem (GAL), a specialist appointed by a court to represent the best interests of a child in legal proceedings.
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Counsel detailed the teenager's background, telling Judge Brendan Toale that the youth had been born in prison because his mother had been in custody and had serious addiction issues. He was also born with foetal alcoholism, and Mr Dwan emphasised the youth's 'tragic start in life', likening it to a 'heavy millstone around his neck'.
He was in care from infancy, but at the age of six, he was placed in a foster home with a family, where he remained for a decade and had 'stability and a good nurturing life'.
However, the youth was 'taken out' of that placement and later relocated to care homes around the country, lacking parental guidance.
Mr Dwan quoted another judge, who dealt with one of the youth's earlier cases, that he was 'absolutely failed by the State in that regard'.
An eleventh-hour GAL report was drafted when he turned 18 and reached adulthood, as Tusla implemented an aftercare plan.
The youth listened intently but did not address the proceedings.
The court heard that due to his mother's drinking problems, the teenager was predisposed to addiction. Mr Dwan elaborated about how the teenager went on to attend child and adolescent mental health services with issues including PTSD.
The court heard that some problems coincided with the ending of his long-term foster placement. The teenager connected with his family and started to come to Garda attention, while abusing alcohol and drugs, which he had a predisposition to from birth.
At one stage, the substance abuse induced psychosis, resulting in the teenager being hospitalised.
Judge Toale noted the pre-sentence report assessed the young man as being at moderate risk of reoffending.
He also noted the contents of the GAL report and what he termed the 'extraordinary background' to the case, and placed the teenager on supervised probation for six months. During that time, he must not reoffend and must comply with the directions of his probation officer to divert him from further offending; otherwise, the case could be reopened and a harsher penalty considered.
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