The woman convicted of assisting in the abduction of six- year-old Deirdre Crowley by her father was sentenced yesterday to two years' imprisonment.
However, the judge suspended the last six months of the prison sentence after considering pleas about the dominant influence which the late Christopher Crowley had over Regina Nelligan (33). The judge also ordered that Nelligan receive psychiatric treatment while in custody.
Deirdre's father Christopher murdered her in Clonmel, Co Tipperary, on August 30th, 2001, before taking his own life. He had been on the run with his daughter since December 1999.
Nelligan, of Carriganagroghera, Fermoy, Co Cork, had pleaded guilty at a previous court sitting to the abduction of a child other than by a parent, contrary to Section 17 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act.
In court yesterday, Judge Michael O'Shea highlighted the number of occasions on which Deirdre's mother, Ms Christine O'Sullivan, made public appeals for information on the child's whereabouts.
He emphasised that as well as appeals following the original abduction, Ms O'Sullivan had continued to seek public assistance in tracing her daughter on special occasions, such as Deirdre's birthday, Christmas and the first anniversary of her abduction.
Judge O'Shea also recalled Nelligan's key role in organising the accommodation used by Christopher and Deirdre Crowley and in ensuring that their whereabouts remained a secret.
The judge pointed out that the defendant had also had several opportunities to tell investigating gardaí what she knew.
Appealing for leniency, defence counsel, Mr Niall Dornin SC, highlighted the controlling influence exerted over his client by Crowley, describing him as having "dominion" over her in a situation that went beyond normal persuasion and was not unlike the hold child abusers often have on their victims.
The court heard during a previous sitting that for the 21 months that Deirdre was missing, she had never set foot outside the environs of the remote cottage in Co Tipperary where she was ultimately murdered.
It was also revealed that Nelligan was involved in a relationship with Crowley when she was a 16-year-old student of his at the Loreto Convent in Fermoy. The affair began during a school trip to Paris and lasted until after Nelligan completed her Leaving Certificate. The relationship ended badly during a holiday in Italy and Nelligan moved to Dublin to study at NCAD.
Her former teacher continued to visit her for her first year in the capital. There was no further contact between the pair until July 1999 when they met at a supermarket car-park in Portlaoise.
Nelligan subsequently organised the rented accommodation near Clonmel where Crowley held Deirdre.
The pair met again on December 4th in the car-park of the Talbot Hotel, Wexford, and Nelligan drove Crowley and his daughter to Clonmel.
The defendant continued to visit the cottage on a regular basis and brought provisions to the property. She contacted a number of Christopher's friends, using a secret code to tell them all was well.
The court heard how, during their investigation into Deirdre Crowley's abduction, gardaí called to Nelligan's Dublin address but she denied any knowledge of the child's whereabouts or Crowley's location.
However, press cuttings in relation to the case were found at the apartment. When questioned about these, the defendant said she was simply interested in her former teacher's plight.
The judge was told previously that once details emerged of Deirdre Crowley's killing and Christopher Crowley's death by suicide, Nelligan co-operated with investigating gardaí and made a series of statements about her involvement in the abduction.
Evidence was also given of how Nelligan believed that Deirdre was removed from her mother for the child's protection.
Acknowledging the importance of Nelligan's relationship with Crowley as a young girl, Judge O'Shea said yesterday, "Chris Crowley was her first boyfriend and, in her view, was perfect and she was madly in love with him."
The judge also highlighted the deprivation faced by little Deirdre.
"Deirdre Crowley was deprived of a basic human right - the right to a childhood - over the two-year period; the right to go to school; the right to play with other children and the love, affection and guidance of her mother Christine were also denied her," he said.
The judge said this was an extremely tragic case but also an extremely serious charge and he was satisfied that a custodial sentence was appropriate.