A woman who abducted a four-day-old baby from a maternity hospital was sentenced to three and a half years in prison yesterday.
Marie Crean (36), of Eglinton Place, Western Road, Cork, had been convicted at an earlier sitting of taking a newborn child from the care of its mother at the Erinville Maternity Hospital in Cork city centre on the night of September 24th, 2002.
Crean snatched the baby from the maternity ward and ran for the door of the hospital with the baby concealed under her t-shirt.
She was stopped by hospital staff and gave back the baby after they were alerted by an alarm triggered by a tag on the infant's ankle.
She fled from the hospital and gardaí tracked her down after identifying her on CCTV footage.
At an earlier sitting, Crean was told she would not go to prison if she attended a rehabilitation course to treat her alcoholism.
Cork Circuit Criminal Court was told yesterday that Ms Crean "broke out" of the facility on two occasions. Recently she received a three-month sentence for escaping.
Yesterday she was back before Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin who, at earlier sittings, warned the accused she would face a prison sentence if she broke the terms of her earlier agreement with the court. The court was told yesterday that Crean had a severe addiction to alcohol and the abduction was unplanned and unpremeditated.
She carried out the baby snatch on the first birthday of her infant twins who were taken from her and placed in care before the date of the crime.
Crean told the court she realised the seriousness of her crime. "I was very depressed at the time. I'm after realising what I did. I have been in for treatment but it really hasn't done anything good.
"It will never happen again. I will never, never go near a hospital again," she said.
Ms Marjorie Farrelly, prosecuting, told the court the State feared the accused may re-offend.
Mr Ray Boland, defending, said Crean was a "sad individual, with a sad background" and asked the court to take into consideration that she had been in custody for a total of seventeen months since the night of the abduction.
Judge Ó Donnabháin said he had no choice but to impose a custodial sentence.
"You knew the enormous distress this caused to a woman at her most vulnerable time.
"I have taken into account that you are a dysfunctional person and that rehabilitation would benefit you and benefit society.
"There is a risk that you would re-offend as long as you are unrehabilitated.
"This is a very serious offence - the reasons for which remain unattended," he said.