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A man who ran over his former partner’s leg with his car and led gardaí on a 20-minute high-speed chase in a separate incident has been jailed for four years.
Samy Taib (21), with addresses at Drumcairn Avenue, Tallaght and Meile An Rí Road, Balgaddy, Lucan, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault causing harm at addresses in Dublin and one count of coercive control on dates between May 9th, 2018, and June 19th, 2019.
Taib also pleaded guilty to endangerment and driving without a licence or insurance at Fettercairn Ring Road, Tallaght and dangerous driving causing endangerment at Main Street, Celbridge, Co Kildare, on October 13th, 2019. He has 22 previous convictions, mainly for road traffic offences.
Imposing sentence at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on Friday, Judge Elma Sheahan said it was clear that Taib’s former partner had “endured great upset and trauma from the assaults and psychological injury” caused by his offending during their relationship.
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Referring to the road traffic offences, the judge said it was “almost miraculous” that no other road user ended up seriously injured due to his actions on the day.
She sentenced Taib to a total of five years in prison, with credit to be given for any time served on this matter or while in custody in Scotland in relation to a European arrest warrant.
The judge said the serious nature of Taib’s offending and his previous convictions for road traffic offences were aggravating factors.
She said the court does not believe Taib was aware that his use of drugs might have been affecting his mental health more than usual, owing to his then undiagnosed “enduring, major serious” mental illness.
The judge said that Taib’s culpability was reduced owing to his diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia while in Scotland in the wake of these incidents. Medical reports indicate a history of psychological issues as a younger teenager.
Judge Sheahan said the mitigating factors include Taib’s guilty plea, which meant the victim did not have to give evidence at a trial and “relive the trauma of her experiences with the accused”.
She also took into consideration Taib’s co-operation with gardaí, his work history, family support and background of psychological illness.
The judge said she would suspend the final 12 months of the sentence for a period of two years on strict conditions, including that Taib comes under the supervision of the Probation Service, has no contact with the victim and stays away from her home address and workplace.
Taib gave an undertaking to the court that he would not have contact with the injured party by any means while in custody.
Judge Sheahan also disqualified Taib from driving for a period of six years.
The court previously heard that Taib had choked his then-partner on a number of occasions over the course of their relationship. In another incident, he hit her with his car, driving over her right leg.
In her victim impact statement, Taib’s former partner said he made her a “different person” who struggled with depression and anxiety. She said she suffered psychological and physical injuries, including permanent damage to her foot. She said Taib had “ruined” her life and hurt her family.
Brian Gageby BL, for Taib, said his client accepts he caused injury to his ex-partner and that it was not an acceptable way to behave.