Boy was stabbed several times by teenagers, court hears

A teenage girl has been sent forward for trial to the Circuit Court after a Leaving Cert student was beaten and repeatedly stabbed by a gang.

The 17-year-old is charged with assault causing harm, committing violent disorder with five others, and threatening to kill or cause serious harm to the boy, (17), who was seriously injured on September 19th, 2015, at Edenmore Park, in Donaghmede, Co Dublin.

It has been claimed the boy lost out on a soccer scholarship in the US as a result of injuries he allegedly sustained in the attack, the Dublin Children’s Court was told.

The girl was aged 15 at the time, but Judge John O’Connor held that her case was too serious to be heard in the juvenile court and must go forward to the Circuit Court, which has tougher sentencing powers.

The girl, who was accompanied to court by her father and her solicitor, was served with a book of evidence.

The judge granted legal aid and made an order sending her forward for trial to the Circuit Court where she will face her next hearing on July 7th.

He had refused jurisdiction after he was presented with a summary of the prosecution evidence and heard defence submissions about the girl’s background.

In an outline of the allegations, Garda Brian Healy said the 17-year-old boy intervened in a row between the defendant and another girl. He walked the second girl to a place of safety.

It was alleged the defendant assaulted him, “threatened to have him cut up” and she made a call to another youth telling him the boy had assaulted her. This will be denied, her lawyer told the court.

Garda Healy said it was alleged five youths arrived armed with a baton, a knife and crutches and confronted the boy. He said the girl’s accusation was the catalyst for the assault on the boy. He was stabbed “on a number of occasions in the back”, struck with crutches and punched, the garda said. It was alleged the boy was chased to a second location where he was struck on the head with a baton and stabbed repeatedly again.

Garda Healy said the boy was helpless on the ground while he was kicked and punched in the body and head, and beaten with a blunt object.

The attackers fled after locals came out of their house to find the boy was struggling to remain conscious and he had a number of visible stab wounds. He was rushed to Beaumont Hospital where it was discovered he had a punctured lung, the court was told.

‘Sliced’

CCTV evidence was shown in court of young people running to the scene of the second attack and running in the opposite direction later. Garda Healy said the girl was also among that group. He agreed with the defence that the girl did not cause the injuries sustained by the boy, but he said she had allegedly threatened the boy saying “I am going to get you f**king sliced.”

Garda Healy said the boy spent two weeks in hospital, but had to return again last year for two days as a result of problems related to the attack. He had post-traumatic stress disorder, his education was affected and he could not complete the Leaving Certificate, and he was unable to play football.

He had been expected to take up a soccer scholarship in the US but had been unable to do so, Garda Healy had said.

It was put to the garda that the girl asserts she had been assaulted, however, Garda Healy said there were independent witnesses that claim she was not.

Two youths have had their cases dealt with in the Circuit Court while another three others are still before the courts.