A toddler, left in the care of an alcoholic man by his mother for 24 hours, will remain in State care for at least another month, a judge at the Dublin District Family Court has ruled.
The boy was found by social workers at the man’s flat on Wednesday of last week.
There was no suitable food in the flat for the child and he was dressed only in a T-shirt, trousers and slippers and the flat was not heated, the court was told.
Social workers called gardaí when they found the child.
A garda gave evidence that when he arrived, the toddler was sitting in the middle of the floor, looking dishevelled and smelling of urine.
The flat owner was known to him, he said, and “sits in the same seat and drinks all day”.
The flat was in an unkempt state and was known to house local alcoholics.
The garda said he invoked powers under childcare legislation and the child was taken into emergency care.
He also said the mother had 13 convictions for public order offences and petty theft.
The social worker said the flat owner told him the mother had left the child at the flat at 6pm on the Tuesday and had not returned.
The man admitted to having drunk two bottles of red wine during the day and was “highly intoxicated”.
The man also said the child had slept in the bed with him on Tuesday night. At the very least, he could have rolled over on the toddler during the night, the social worker said.
He also raised concerns about the mother’s alleged drink and drug use.
The social worker said the mother told him she had gone to the post office on Tuesday and returned at 2am, but could not get back into the flat.
She phoned the next day and the flat owner told her the child was still asleep so she “went about her business”.
The Child and Family Agency obtained a week-long emergency care order last week and asked Judge Brendan Toale to make an interim care order for a month.
The judge was told the child’s father was happy the child was in care and had said he could not care for his son because he was returning to full-time education.
The mother, who was present and represented in court, consented without prejudice.
Judge’s order
Making the order, the judge said he believed the child had been neglected and left for 24 hours in the care of an individual who could not care for him.
Separately, the judge said he would list a case “every day if necessary” until funding for a placement for a teenager was secured.
The social worker in the case said a placement had been identified and funding approval was awaited.
A solicitor for the girl’s court-appointed guardian said the girl’s situation had deteriorated recently.
She had parted with her age-appropriate boyfriend, and was “back in the clutches of a very, very antisocial group”.
Her mental health had deteriorated and her GP said she needed to get out of her locality.
The solicitor said funding approval had been given for a different placement, but a new application had to be made for each separate placement.
“If there is approval for one placement already, how long can it take?” the judge asked. “This is what telephones are for and emails.” He adjourned the case to Friday.
In another case, the judge refused to hold an initial interim care order hearing for a child after being told there was no Legal Aid Board solicitor available.
