A convicted rapist was granted custody of his child after a brief family court hearing, despite his criminal record, leaving the child living with him for more than a year while the case remains unresolved.
The child was removed from the care of their mother after the court ordered that they should stay with their father pending a full hearing. Repeated adjournments have meant that hearing has yet to take place.
The mother said the decision had caused a year of “heartbreak”. “Not having them here in the morning, bringing them to school, having dinner with them and putting them to bed,” she said. “After all their life with me, they were just taken away.”
She had sought a protection order against her former partner after their relationship broke down. She said he had pushed her to the ground and spat at her before warning: “I’ll get you for this.”
The woman said she only discovered her former partner’s criminal past after becoming pregnant. He had previously been jailed for eight years after being convicted of rape in a case that attracted national attention.
She said he had described the conviction as a “miscarriage of justice” and claimed the victim had cried rape when she tried to end the relationship. The mother said he later showed himself to be controlling.
The dispute escalated last summer while the mother was abroad with the child and members of her extended family. During a meal at a restaurant, local police arrived after receiving a welfare report about the child.
The mother said she later learned that her former partner had contacted police from Ireland after seeing pictures of the family gathering on social media, alleging that she had been drunk. The officers spoke to the family before leaving.
She said her former partner then travelled to the country where they were staying and told her he was taking the child home. She agreed reluctantly because she did not want to frighten the child, believing she would be able to arrange an early flight back.
When she returned the following day and went to his home, she said he refused to hand the child back. She reported the matter to gardaí but was told it was a family court issue.
She also discovered that he had obtained a safety order against her without her knowledge, alleging that she had been mentally abusive. She said she came to believe the events had been planned.
At a family court hearing several days later, the mother expected the child to be returned to her. Instead, she said, the judge ordered that the child remain with the father until a full hearing, allowing her two hours of access on a Saturday.
“She heard no evidence. She didn’t know anything about either of us,” the mother said. She added that the judge appeared to be unaware of the rape conviction and that she was not allowed to speak when she tried to raise it.
“My child is my everything and for more than a year, they have been living with him,” she said.
The case has prompted renewed political criticism of Ireland’s family court system. Independent TD Paul Gogarty said it raised serious questions about how the courts operate and about the use of the in-camera rule, which keeps family proceedings secret.
The Dublin Mid-West representative said greater openness was needed, along with reform and scrutiny of court-appointed experts. He said the existing system was “deeply flawed and damaging to children and families”.
