A WOMAN will be sentenced later this week for the “huge” neglect of her five children which left them with severe and long-term psychological difficulties.
The court heard the children, who were then ranging in age from two to nine years old, were left underfed and dirty.
They had inappropriate clothing, insufficient schooling and were not toilet-trained.
The local sergeant who led the investigation told Isobel Kennedy SC, prosecuting, that after they were taken into care, one of the children ate incessantly until he got sick and none of them knew how to use a toilet, wash or when to change their clothes.
All the children were behind academically though one of the foster parents described one of the boys as being very bright.
The children’s 34-year-old mother, who cannot be named to protect the children’s identity, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to 10 counts of neglecting the children between May 2005 and September 2007.
Her husband (44) has already been convicted of neglect of children and sexual abuse and rape of a young girl by a Central Criminal Court jury. He has also a further conviction of sexual assault of an eight-year-old girl from the UK.
One of the man’s previous convictions included the abduction of this woman (the defendant) in England when she was just 14 years old. The couple married days after her 18th birthday.
Judge Martin Nolan said the children had been neglected in a dreadful way and he could not imagine a worse situation.
“It was a simple case of huge neglect,” the judge said after noting from the five victim impact statements before the court that the children were left with severe and ongoing difficulties.
He remanded the woman on continuing bail until Thursday for sentence.
In September 2007, when the children were put under the care of the HSE after an emergency care order, officials noted her eight- and four-year-old daughters wore only shirts and ankle socks while the mother was warmly dressed in a pink top with a Playboy bunny cap.
The eldest son, then aged 11, ate chips in the Garda station that night while stuffing more into his pockets. His teeth were rotten because he used to eat from a stolen bag of sugar due to hunger.
His 10-year-old brother wore trousers halfway up his legs, had no socks, no underwear and had holes in his runners. The eldest boy is now 15 and is living in a special care unit outside of Ireland.
The woman’s defence counsel, Aileen Donnelly SC, said her client was very much under the influence of her husband.
“Her relationship with him diminished her ability to act independently but she has since turned her life around,” counsel said.
“She was a victim and a victim who did not learn herself. Her head was turned by him and she never righted it herself,” Ms Donnelly told the judge.
She said her client has “expressed the utmost remorse” and is now in contact with her two older children. The three youngest do not want to meet her.