Boy born an addict detained for travelling in stolen car

A teenage boy, who was born an addict due to his mother's drug problem, has been detained for resisting arrest and travelling in a stolen car.

The 15-year-old pleaded guilty at the Dublin Children's Court to being a passenger in a stolen car, on a date earlier this year. He also admitted resisting arrest in connection with the same incident and smashing a car window on another occasion.

Judge Ann Ryan heard that after the boy got out of the stolen car he “violently resisted arrest and continued to be violent”. A garda who had caught him had to get a colleague to help him arrest the boy.

He had his bail earlier for breaking conditions set by the court stating he had to an 8pm to 8am curfew at his home address. He was also warned that he had to remain sober.

After a week in custody on remand he pleaded guilty to the charges and Judge Ann Ryan heard that the out-of-school teenager already had 13 prior criminal convictions mostly for what were described as minor road traffic offences.

Counsel for the boy said when he drinks it “brings out the temper in him”. The defence also asked the judge to note that the boy had a difficult background and his parents had “a long history of drug abuse”.

“When he was born there was a period of time he was weaned off, for eight weeks, because of his mother's addiction,” the court was told.

A solicitor for the HSE said that agency had also been trying to assist the boy's family. But the author of a welfare report furnished to the court “found it difficult to engage and meet the family”.

Judge Ryan told the teenager that he had been involved in very serious offending but his guilty pleas were noted as well as his “involvement, or lack of it, with supports put in place”.

She detained him for four months and ordered that he was to be on probation supervision for another four month period after his release.

The boy, who was accompanied to his case by his mother, did not address the court during his sentence hearing. Earlier his mother had told the court that her son had not been obeying a curfew imposed by the court.

She had also said “I am trying my best” adding that her son has not been going to school, as a result of which she has ended up facing prosecution.

The teenager also admitted other charges for violent behaviour in a garda station and criminal damage to a window on a garda car. Judge Ryan sentenced him to 12 months supervised probation for those offences.