Man jailed over attack on ex whose baby was severely malnourished and left in soiled nappy for days

Home had no electricity or running water and baby, who had to hospitalised, looked like a two or three-month-old but was actually 10-months-old, court heard

Yesterday at 17:08

A man who assaulted his ex-partner whose baby was in a severely malnourished state has been jailed for nine months.

The 40-year-old Dublin man, who can’t be named for legal reasons, left his victim with a fractured nose as a result of the assault, which occurred in her home on May 14, 2020.

It was the defence case that the man became emotional when the woman asked him to come to her home to give her money for baby food and he found her 10-month-old child in “a very bad state”.

The woman told gardaí that they had both been drinking and the man assaulted her over a row about her mobile phone. Neighbours who heard her screaming alerted gardaí, who found both the man and the woman still present when they arrived.

The woman was bleeding, had a black eye and a swollen nose. She and her baby were taken to hospital, where the woman was found to have a fractured nose and deviated septum.

Hospital staff became extremely concerned at the condition of the baby, who looked like a two- or three-month-old infant, but was actually 10 months old at the time.

The baby was found to be severely malnourished and had not been taken care of. The baby’s nappy had not been changed for several days and the home was found to be in disarray with no electricity or running water. The baby was kept in hospital for a number of days and has since been taken into care.

Man jailed over attack on ex whose baby was severely malnourished and left in soiled nappy for days |

Today’s News in 90 seconds – 14th May 2024

The court heard the man and woman were in a relationship between 2012 and 2019 and share an older child together. This child has been in the care of the man’s father – the grandfather – since 2019.

Passing down sentence today, Judge Orla Crowe said that while the man told gardaí that a “scuffle” took place between them: “It takes some hitting to cause a fracture and a deviation to the nose”.

She noted the pair had been drinking prior to the incident and the court heard there were different versions of events in relation to what happened.

The man alleged that he gave the woman money for baby food and she went out to the shops while he minded the children, but that she returned an hour and a half later with no baby food. She alleged he was the one who went to the shops.

The woman is still before the courts in relation to the alleged child neglect.

Judge Crowe said the aggravating factors in the man’s case were the extent of the injuries caused and the fact it was an unprovoked assault. He has 22 previous convictions for minor road traffic matters.

In mitigation, she noted he has an excellent work history and has worked consistently as a factory worker, scaffolder and labourer. A number of testimonials were handed into court on his behalf.

He pays regular maintenance to his child, who is living with his father and sees this child regularly, the court heard.

Judge Crowe handed down a sentence of two years and three months, but suspended the final 18 months on a number of conditions, including that the man undergo anger management and domestic violence programmes and that he have no future contact with the woman.

He is to arrange future childcare access with the woman through a third party, the judge ruled.