Teenager jailed on 82nd conviction

A repeat teen offender was yesterday detained for one year on his 82nd conviction.

The 17-year-old boy had appeared before the Dublin Children’s Court for sentencing in relation to 11 charges for a number of car-theft, assault and burglary offences.

Judge Angela Ni Chonduin detained the out-of-school boy, who has been before the courts since his early teens, for one year in St Patrick’s Institution for a car theft, which occurred in January in Dublin’s south inner city.

He was also given concurrent terms of three months for two attempted car thefts, and three other trespassing offences and a concurrent two month terms for assault.

For two burglary offences he received concurrent terms of two four months and six months; he was also given a one month sentence for theft, which is also to run concurrently.

The court had heard that prior to his sentence for these offences he already had 71 convictions, over which he had been detained earlier.

Over the last three years the teenager has been before the courts over numerous offences which have led to him being in and out of detention centres since he was aged 15.

The boy was once described at an earlier hearing as being “a danger to himself and others”.

Last year he was detained for a number of offences committed after he had been released from custody.

He had been given numerous chances to find a job or start training course but he continued to commit further offences.

In April 2003, when the teenager was aged 15, he was detained and banned from driving for four years.

On that occasion, the court was told that the boy had been arrested for stealing CDs and Playstation Games from HMV on Grafton Street, was caught carrying a screwdriver on several occasions, found with a stolen TV/Video set which had been taken in a burglary, arrested for carrying bolt cutters and an iron bar.

Evidence was also given that he had been stopped driving stolen cars without a licence or insurance, broke a shop window in a drunken row with a security man, smashed in a pub window with a brick, engaged in violent and insulting behaviour to a garda and members of the public when intoxicated and was once caught trespassing in a hospital.

At a flat complex in south Dublin, he was abusive to residents and hit one over the eye with a stick leaving him with a cut, spat at staff at St James’ Hospital when they asked him to leave the grounds.

While drunk he had also kicked and punched a garda who had arrested him.

On another occasion he got drunk and criminally damaged an antique sword and display cabinet, in the St Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre, and became abusive to staff and customers there when he was asked to leave the premises.

He had interfered with gardaí who had been dealing with a public order problem. He blocked their patrol car from moving and when directed to leave the area he punched an officer.