SAVAGE ASSAULT: Man jailed for beating woman over three days in front of her children

A man who savagely beat his wife in front of their children over a three-day period has been jailed by Judge John Martin at Nenagh Circuit Criminal Court.

The man, who cannot be named to protect the identity of his victim and the children, pleaded guilty to assault causing harm at the couple’s home between March 19, 2021 and March 21, 2021.

The court heard that the injured party had received serious injuries during the assault.

Judge Martin was told by Det Garda Martin Connolly that the woman had escaped from the attack with her children only when the accused had left their home to smoke outside.

It had been her intention to go to Nenagh Garda Station, but the accused pursued her and she took the decision to board a bus and convinced the driver to take her on board and he brought her to Henry Street Garda Station in Limerick.

CCTV coverage was shown of the woman leaving the house with her children and being pursued by the man.

Footage was also shown of her boarding the bus at Banba Square just ahead of the man’s arrival at the bus stop.

In a statement given to the gardaí, the bus driver said that he could see the woman was “in an awful state” and that she had bruises and her lip was cut.

The youngest child was “screaming hard” for the bus journey.

Garda Connolly said that he later interviewed the woman who was given accommodation in a refuge for victims of domestic abuse where she was photographed by gardaí and by a social worker.

The garda said the woman’s injuries consisted of bruises to the face and forehead, her lips were cut and she had marks on her neck, wrists and arms as well as her hips.

The woman had two black eyes and marks on her legs.

“She had been assaulted badly,” the garda said, and when he met her she was “distraught”.

The garda said that he arranged to collect clothing from her home to bring to the refuge. The defendant did not attend the home but gave him a key to the door.

The man later came to the garda station and gave a voluntary statement of his version of events in which he claimed he had observed footage on one of the children’s computers of her having a relationship with another man.

He said that it was her “reluctance” to tell him who that person was that “caused him to get angry and hit her a number of occasions into the face”.

He said that his victim had been entitled to leave the house at any time, but she was not allowed to bring their three children with her.

Following his arrest, he accepted he punched the woman in the chest, but would not accept that he caused the other injuries directly, saying he accepted she may have fallen and this caused her injuries.

Two of the children were interviewed by a specialist interviewer and both said that they had observed their father assaulting their mother over the weekend.

At the time of the assault, they were aged nine, seven and two. In her victim personal statement, the woman said that the impact of the assaults continued to have an effect on her.

She said that as a result of domestic violence she had to flee and was now effectively homeless as she was still living in emergency accommodation.

She had suffered mental, emotional and physical impacts and found it hard to sleep.

“Loud noise scares me,” she said.

The court heard that the accused had nine previous convictions.

The accused’s barrister, Anthony Sammon, SC, said that his client had written a letter of apology in which he said: “I don’t know how much my apology will mean to you, or even if it will be enough. There isn’t a day without regretting my actions. I know what is done can’t be undone.

“I am fighting my demons every day. I am deeply ashamed. I hope you will find the strength to forgive me some day.”

Mr Sammon said that the defendant accepted “total responsibility” for what had happened and that he was “upset” by what he had done.

The man had shown insight into what was “gross behaviour and gross violence”.

Passing sentence, Judge Martin said that for the accused to suggest he was provoked was “outrageous”.

He described the attack as “thuggery” and said that for the accused to allege he had found a video on one of children’s computers was an effort to make it a “crime of passion”.

His response had been to “batter your partner in a prolonged assault in the presence of your children who had to watch their mother being assaulted”.

In mitigation, there had been a late plea and a voluntary attendance at the garda station.

Judge Martin jailed the man for four years, but suspended the final 12 months on condition he sign a bond to keep the peace for two years after his release and that he have no contact with his family without prior consent.