A 21-year-old father who left his infant daughter without treatment after he physically abused her was sentenced to 10 months' in prison when he appeared before Galway District Court.
In sentencing, Judge John Garavan said the message had to go out that anybody who abused a child, "a parent or anybody else", had to pay a severe penalty.
Michael Cubbard, of Connolly Terrace, Bohermore, Galway, was convicted of assaulting Courtney Bartley at Bohermore on a date between February 1st and February 10th, 1999.
Det Garda Tom Morris said he had received a complaint from the community care services that an infant had been assaulted and received serious injuries on February 25th. She had been born on December 22nd, 1998, to Michael Cubbard (21) and Ms Natalie Bartley (16).
The week following the baby's birth, she was admitted to hospital for a number of different reasons. At seven weeks, during a clinical examination, a paediatrician noticed bruising on the child's face which suggested abuse.
A skeletal x-ray showed that five of her ribs were broken. No satisfactory cause was found for her injuries. The community care team then put her into foster care.
Det Garda Morris said the paediatric doctor thought that the child had been assaulted at least twice. He arrested Cubbard who admitted the assault and made a written statement during an interview. In it Cubbard said he lived in his parents' house with his girlfriend and his daughter. The house had only two bedrooms and no bathroom; they shared a box room. He said he was in the house on his own with the baby when she started to cry, so he changed her. She kept crying so he put her into her cot but she would not stop.
He slapped her and flicked her under the eye with his finger and she stopped crying and started to suck her finger. He felt sorry, but said nothing to his girlfriend who thought the baby had hurt herself.
Cubbard said he accompanied his girlfriend to hospital because the baby had an ulcer. The doctor asked about her injuries, but he said nothing because he was afraid his girlfriend would leave him. He said he felt deeply ashamed.
Judge Garavan remarked that this assault did not account for her broken ribs.
Ms Maeve Carroll, defending, said the situation seemed to have been brought about by two young people living in cramped conditions, stress, pressure and lack of finance. The child's mother was now 17 and the relationship had broken down.
Her client was anxious to keep up a relationship with his baby and was attending Men Overcoming Violence. He had got a job and was due to start work the following day. He had no previous convictions.
The judge fixed recognisances at Cubbard's own surety of £500 and an independent surety of £1,000.