Son broke his mother's finger because she pointed at him 

In a row with his then 63-year-old mother, the man 'grabbed her hand and bent her finger until it cracked'. He has been jailed for 18 months 

31-year-old Wayne McCauley of Glenmore House, Swords, Dublin, at the Criminal Courts of Justice on Parkgate St in Dublin during a previous hearing. File picture: IrishPhotoDesk

A man who bent his mother’s finger, breaking a bone in her hand, because she was pointing at him, has been jailed for 18 months.

Wayne McCauley (31) was “viciously attacked by a meat cleaver” in the late 2010s, and a psychology report stated “some of the brain fell out and had to be put back in”, the court was told.

McCauley of Glenmore House, Swords, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assault causing harm on June 17, 2023.

'A disgraceful thing for her son to do'

Passing sentence on Friday, Judge Martin Nolan described McCauley’s attack on his mother as “a disgraceful thing for her son to do” before jailing him for 18 months.

Garda Noelle Byrne gave evidence that the injured party arrived home at 9am one morning to find her son there, but the court heard there was an “arrangement he [Wayne McCauley] was not to be on the premises before 11.30am.” 

A row broke out between McCauley and his then 63-year-old mother. He “grabbed her hand and bent her finger until it cracked”, the court was told. She went for an X-ray, and she had a fractured metatarsal.

On July 11, 2023, gardaí contacted McCauley by telephone. He was later arrested, detained, and made full admissions. “I attacked her. I bent her finger,” he told gardaí and said he was coming down from drugs at the time.

The court was told McCauley has 139 previous convictions, predominantly for public order and attempted robberies. He was on bail at the time of the assault on his mother, for three public order offences in March 2023. A victim impact statement referred to in court said her son no longer lives with her, but that she still loves him.

Luigi Rea BL, defending, said the assault was part of an “ongoing falling out”. 

Mitigation 

Mr Rea said that in the late 2010s, McCauley was “viciously attacked by a meat cleaver”, and a psychology report stated “some of the brain fell out and had to be put back in”.

In mitigation, Mr Rea said his client has a mild intellectual disability and an inability to deal with stress. Counsel said it was: “a terrible thing he did, he did apologise.” 

Judge Nolan said it was “a disgraceful thing for her son to do”. “McCauley has had his own problems”, said Judge Nolan. He noted he “has a long history of offending”, was living in a hostel and was not welcome in his mother’s house. 

The judge noted his remorse and said he does “not think he’ll hurt his mother again” and “lost his temper with her”.

Judge Nolan said a defendant would have to have almost perfect mitigation to avoid a custodial sentence. But the judge said it was a “cruelty he did to his mother” and jailed him for 18 months.