Portlaoise Court: Girl (14) on assaults and thefts charges
Portlaoise Courthouse
A 14-YEAR-OLD girl was before the children’s court in Portlaoise last week on charges of assaults and thefts.
Due to the defendant’s age, the girl cannot be identified.
She had previously been before the court charged with assault causing harm at Fitzmaurice Place, Portlaoise on 17 January last year, assault causing harm at Park View, Portlaoise on 8 April this year, the theft of Red Bull and sandwiches to the value of €65.80 from Downey’s Centra, Dublin Road, Portlaoise on 14 April and with the theft of €80 worth of vapes from Cloud Treats, Market Square, Portlaoise on 25 April.
At that hearing, she had been placed on strict bail conditions.
At last week’s sitting, Garda Sgt JJ Kirby said the young teenager had breached her bail conditions when she absconded from the care home and had breached her curfew.
The girl’s solicitor Josephine Fitzpatrick told Judge Susan Fay that on one of the occasions her young client had not been picked up by her carers to be brought back to the home.
Judge Fay remanded the girl on continuing bail to the 25 May sitting of the court to monitor how she is abiding by her bail conditions and to see how she is reacting to her newly appointed guardian ad litem (independent professional appointed by the court to represent the child’s best interests during legal proceedings, such as child care, custody or high-conflict family law cases).
