Director of Public Prosecutions -v- T.C.

• Judge: O'Connor John J.
• Judgment Date: 10 April 2017
• Neutral Citation: [2017] IEDC 07
• Case Outcome: Approved
• Court: District Court (Ireland)

[2017] IEDC 07

THE CHILDREN COURT- DUBLIN METROPLOITIAN DISTRICT COURT

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS (DPP)

APPLICANT

-AND-

T.C

RESPONDENT

BACKGROUND

1. The Y oung Defendant [c hild] TC was born in early 2000. He currently resides with his mother, [O], and an older sister in a Bed and

Breakfast acc ommodation in Dublin, but otherwise is e ffec tively homeless. The family have a long history of homelessness. TC parents

are separated and t here is a history of criminality in some members of the extended fa mily.

2. TC at tended school until his Junior Certificate [an educ ational qualification awarded in Ireland by the Department of Educat ion and

Skills to s tudents w ho have suc cessf ully completed the junior cycle of sec ondary educat ion, and achieved a minimum standard in their

Junior Certification]. Although a pleasant and engaged student of average ability his at tendance at sc hool was a cont inuing problem

owing to the family’s fract ured living arrangements.

3. TC was initially refused bail by the Children Court following his appearance in c ourt in regards to an inc ident on the 8 November

2016. He is currently on Bail due to both his and his mother’s engagement wit h the Extern Bail Supervision Scheme. Extern, is a soc ial

justice c harity which wa s awarded a c ontract by t he Irish Youth Justic e Service [which operates as through the Department of

Children and Yout h Affairs] to deliver a ‘Bail Supervision Scheme’. Currently, t his is a pilot scheme in the Children Court Dublin, working

alongside the Irish Youth Justic e Service, to ensure young people on bail and their families are supported through a dedicated scheme

to address t heir needs. The sc heme provides an intensive support through the use of Multisyte mic T herapy (MST), an Evidence- Based

approach, which s eeks to understand t he fac tors that c ontribute to t he young person’s behaviour.

4. MST is an internationally recognised Evidence Based Programme. MST interventions s tarts out by identifying the c auses of

offending, and then builds itself around treat ing them. It is called “multi-systemic” because it works ac ross the different social

systems that the young person moved in; family, school, peer group and community. MST addresses risk fact ors that lead to

offending, and works with the family as we ll as the off ender, coming to the fa mily’s environment in their time, and asking what the

family needs. It works in the four soc ial environments of t he young person being family, sc hool, peer group and community. It w orks in

the c ommunity with chronic yo ung offenders who are det ention bound.

5. Since being admitted to Bail JC has worked well with the Bail Support Scheme.

6. JC has also at tended a Dublin based Youthreac h for five days a week [Monday–Friday] since early 2017. Youthreac h is a

Department of Education and Skills official educat ion, training and work experience programme for early school leavers a ged 15–20. It

offers young people t he opportunity to identify options within adult life, and provides t hem with opportunities to ac quire certificat ion.

FACTS

Charge Sheets: Garda Brian Masterson: Summons [23 January 2016]

7. The relevant legislation to apply to t his case is as follows. Dangerous driving-sect ion 53 (1) of the Road T raffic Ac t 1961, as

amended by section 4 of the Road Traff ic Ac t 2011, (Liable to a f ine or detention for up t o 6 months detention or bot h. There is also

a mandatory disqualificat ion from driving.) No Driving Licence- sect ion 38 of the Road Traffic Ac t 1961 (as substituted by sect ion 12

of the Road Traffic Ac t, 2006) provides the offenc e; sec tion 102 Road Traffic Ac t 1961 (as substituted by sect ion 12 of the Road

Traffic Act , 2006) provides the penalty. No Insurance- sec tion 56 Road Traffic Act , as amended by sec tion 18 of the Road Traffic

Act , 2006.

8. In this cas e, TC was driving a scrambler motorbike on a public road in Dublin and hit a Volkswagen car while over-t aking before he

collided head on with a T oyota Avensis. The c ar he hit was driven by a mother who had her husband and their two young children,

aged four and eleven as pas sengers. The Mot orbike came though the windows of the c ar in the c ollision. The victims didn’t wish to

give a vict im impact st atement to t he Court, but Garda Masterson informed the Court that w hile no one was injured, the c hildren were

very upset and t heir was extensive damage to the c ar resulting in it being a “write -off ”. The owners had only third party insurance

policy and are not covered financ ially for the loss of t he c ar.

Charge Sheets: Garda Canice Martin Phelan [17 March 2016]

9. The relevant legislation to apply to t his case is as follows. Use of a motor vehicle with the c onsent of the owner- sec tion 112 Road

Traffic Act 1961 (as amended by sect ion 65 of the Road Traff ic Ac t 1968, and as amended by section 18 of t he Road traffic Act

2006). Dangerous driving- sect ion 53 (1) of the Road Traffic Ac t 1961 as amended by section 4 of the Road Traffic Act 2011. No

Driving Licence- section 38 of t he Road Traffic Act 1961 (as substitut ed by Sec tion 12 of t he Road Traffic Act , 2006) provides the

offence ; sec tion 102 Road Traffic Ac t 1961 (as substituted by sect ion 12 of the Road Traffic Ac t, 2006) provides the penalty. No

Insurance- sec tion 56 Road Traffic Act, as a mended by section 18 of t he Road Traffic Act , 2006.

10. The off ence oc curred at 11 p.m. on Saint Patrick’s Day, 2016. TC bought t he c ar for eighty euro on the night of the incident.

When approached by a Garda Síochána car, T C drove dangerously around a housing estate for twent y minutes before entering the

M50 Motorway. T C had c onsumed a significant amount of tablets that evening.

11. Acc ording to the Gardaí, the Gardaí spotted two c ars driving on the wrong side of t he road at t he Little Pa ce roundabout in

Clonee. The Gardaí took up pursuit at whic h the t wo c ars split up. TC wa s driving a 02 REG HONDA Xtreme and drove at speed

through another roundabout on the w rong side of/. He sped through a red light forc ing a taxi to t ake evasive ac tion. He crossed

several lanes without regard for ot her road users and he did this several t imes. He nearly lost c ontrol of t he Honda several times. TC

drove along the M50 slip road and then he c rossed the motorway drivers had to take ev asive act ion. As he reac hed the M50 t oll

bridge he was “boxed in” and stopped. He initially resisted arrest, but then bec ame compliant and he w as handcuff ed and taken t o

Blanchardstown Hospital .The Vic tim didn’t wish to give a vict im statement but Garda Phelan informed the c ourt t hat the stolen c ar

had been hot wired and t he owner was not initially aware it had been st olen . As a result of this incident the c ar was a ” write off“.

The off ences w ere committe d while TC was o n bail on other charges.