Father tells court: My daughter was stripped in Mountjoy

A father has today repeated his claim that his teenage daughter was stripped naked and put into a padded cell with nothing but a sheet to cover her, when she was held in Mountjoy Prison.

On August 31 last at his 17-year-old daughter’s bail hearing at the Children’s Court, the man had said she had been stripped and put in a padded cell when she was held in Mountjoy.

The girl, who has learning difficulties, has been before the court numerous times in recent years and has been the subject of psychological and psychiatric assessments.

Today at his daughter’s hearing, in which she pleaded guilty to a number of petty theft, assault and public order charges, he again claimed that since his last address to the court, there have been further incidents involving his daughter while she was on remand in the prison.

He said that there have been four further incidents. "I spoke to the governor, he did not deny it, the head of the women’s prison did not deny it either," he claimed.

"How would anyone feel if their daughter was stripped naked and had her head smashed into the mattress, not able to breathe. I’m very angry," he told Judge William Early.

He then said that his daughter has been let down by the system, in particular the health board, which has not provided her with a social worker for the last 18 months.

"She never got the psychological help she was supposed to get," he said.

During the hearing, the court heard how the girl had been involved in a number of incidents including shoplifting, being drunk disorderly and she once attacking a garda after she had been arrested following her arrest for a disturbance.

Defence counsel Ms Sinead McMullen told Judge Early that the girl’s parents had separated when she was aged 14. Her family had come to the notice of the South Western Area Health Board over concerns relating to supervision of young children in the household.

Her father, a recovering alcoholic, was later found by the health board to be co-operating in looking after his children.

Ms McMullen outlined how the girl had been the subject of many assessments, sometimes in custody, which found that she had a lack of confidence, low self esteem, low educational level and had been involved in incidents of self-harm.

She also said that evidence was found of emotional neglect and much of her aggression stemmed from her inability to communicate her feelings verbally.

In early 2003, the social worker appointed to the family left her position and since then there has been no replacement. After that the girl and her family were without the support of a social worker which they needed.

Ms McMullen said that in April this year the health board said the girl was on a priority list.

Ms McMullen said that the girl has expressed hopes of training to be a fitness instructor yet finds it difficult to imagine how her life would be in the future.

After hearing submissions from Ms McMullen, Judge Early asked the girl how she had got on while on remand in Mountjoy, to which he girl replied, "grand".

"Your father thinks you are having a hard time, is that true?" he then asked, with the girl replying "Yeah."

She also told Judge Early that she would be interested in learning to become a fitness instructor.

"I have always found her to be pleasant and polite, at variance with the picture painted by the various charges to which she has pleaded guilty," Judge Early said.

He agreed to grant bail to the girl on condition that she resides with her mother, obey a nightly curfew and co-operate with probation workers in their attempts to find her training; with particular reference to finding a course in fitness instruction.

He adjourned the case until November but told the girl that should she be in breach of the conditions, she would be brought back to court.