‘inexcusable’ | 

Man who assaulted his ex partner on day their baby died is jailed

He has 29 previous convictions, which include convictions of assault and endangerment of the same injured party.

Yesterday at 18:05

A man who assaulted his former partner on the day their baby died and on two further occasions has been sentenced to three years in prison.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that the man (32), who can’t be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty to three counts of assault causing harm against a female on dates between July and September 2023 in a Co Dublin suburb.

He has 29 previous convictions, which include convictions of assault and endangerment of the same injured party.

Passing sentence today/yesterday, Judge Orla Crowe said what he did “to the mother of his child who had just lost her four-month-old child is inexcusable”. She said the injured party was “lying in her bed upset, and he grabbed her by the head and thumped her. This is a woman who has just lost her child”.

Judge Crowe said, “The day they buried their child, in front of others, he fired bottles and plates at her”.

The judge said she had seen images of the injuries that the woman sustained and said the woman “was afraid and had to stay in a woman’s refuge”. She said, “I don’t hear any real expression of remorse” from the defendant.The court heard the woman fled the house but was tripped up by the man, and she fell to the ground, where he again kicked her in the head and legs. The woman made her way across the road and later attended Blanchardstown Hospital.

Counsel handed letters into the court, one of which was from a bereavement counsellor who described how the defendant found his child and attempted to do CPR. The letter also said the defendant had survived a very difficult life.

He asked the court to take into account the man’s personal circumstances, his guilty plea, and that he is someone with promise, but he does require help and asked the court to structure a sentence to include rehabilitation.