A care assistant has had her sentence for stealing €4,760 from an elderly woman adjourned by Judge Katherine Delahunt, who said she was trying to blackmail the court by not making arrangements for her sons while she served a prison sentence.
Linda Maher was given the pin number by the 83-year-old victim to get cash for her but then began regularly taking the Laser card from her purse to steal sums of €200 to €350, which she spent on shopping.
Maher said her husband had left her and wasn't paying any maintenance at that time. She was struggling to meet mortgage repayments and had also received demands from debt collectors.
Maher (41), of Castle Village Way, Celbridge, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to one sample charge of stealing from the woman, but admitted to gardaí that she used the victim's card to withdraw cash an average of four times per month between August and October 2005.
Judge Delahunt said she didn't appreciate the "level of blackmail" that Maher used to try to influence the court by failing to make provisions for her 11- and nine-year-old children.
She said she expected that Maher's legal team had warned it would be risky not to find suitable care for the boys. "I am concerned that she has taken this attitude. I can only say it's a way of trying to influence the court," Judge Delahunt said.
Lilly Buckley BL, defending, said Maher hadn't told any family or friends about the sentence hearing because she was ashamed and that was why she hadn't arranged for anyone to care for the boys. There was no "sinister motive" behind it.
Judge Delahunt said she didn't accept that Maher had faced the reality of her situation and adjourned sentencing to allow her to consider the case.
Ms Buckley said Maher had €4,700 in court to pay back to the woman's estate and added that she had always indicated that this was her intention.