A cocktail of “anger and alcohol” coupled with feelings of inadequacy, led a 33-year-old father to take his two infant daughters hostage and endanger their lives and that of their mother by driving recklessly on icy roads on a winter’s night.

The man, who cannot be identified in order to protect the identity of the children, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison – with the final two years suspended – for falsely imprisoning the children in his car, while a further, concurrent eighteen-month sentence was imposed on him for the reckless endangerment of the children’s lives and that of their mother.

The accused pleaded guilty before Galway Circuit Criminal Court to two counts of falsely imprisoning the little girls, then aged four and almost two years, on January 24, 2021.

He also pleaded guilty to a single count of reckless endangerment by driving his car dangerously, thereby putting the lives of his wife and children at risk.

Garda Enda Glennon told the sentence hearing that at around 2am on January 24 last year, the children’s mother, who was in bed, heard her mother and her husband shouting at each other downstairs.

She got up and asked them to keep their voices down because the children were sleeping.

The accused, who had been drinking, became very irate and started shouting louder and banging doors. He grabbed both children from their beds and when his wife tried to stop him leaving the house, he pushed her so hard she banged her head off the wall and fell.

He put the four-year-old in the back seat of the car without any restraints and held the toddler in his arms as he got into the driver’s seat.

Fearing for her children’s safety, the woman jumped into the front passenger’s seat and took hold of the toddler.

Garda Glennon said there was snow and ice on the roads that night as the man drove off at speed.

He said the woman pleaded with her husband to slow down as the children were not secured in the car and she was also afraid he would deliberately go through a wall as the car approached a T-junction.

He punched her repeatedly into the side of the head in an attempt to knock her out, but as they approached the junction, the woman pulled the handbrake, stalling the car.

She managed to take the children out of the car before running up the road.  All three were in their bare feet and wearing flimsy night attire.

The accused managed to get the car started and drove up the road after them.

She lifted the children into a field and lay on top of them in a briar patch to try and hide from him. He eventually found them and punched her in the head again before taking the children from her.

He told her to say she was sorry and then ordered her to get into the boot of the car. She feared she would die if she got into the boot, so she ran from him and hid in another field.

He drove up and down the road at speed with the children in the car looking for her and returned to her mother’s house still looking for her.

She had managed to get back to the house before he did and hid in the attic.

Gardai who were called to the incident arrested him in the driveway of the house on suspicion of drink driving. A breath test taken later gave a reading of 37mg of alcohol per 100ml of breath (the legal limit is 22mg for driving).

The accused was arrested and interviewed.  He told Gardai he had “a dreamlike blackout” and couldn’t remember anything. .

Prosecuting barrister, Patrick Reynolds, said the offence of reckless endangerment carried a maximum term of seven years, while the offence of false imprisonment carried a maximum life sentence.

Mr Bernard Madden SC, defending, said his client instructed him to apologise completely and unreservedly to his family, to his partner and to their two children whose lives had been so damaged by his actions.

He said the man had a limited recollection of what happened but he did not dispute the fact he was responsible for everything that occurred.

Mr Madden said his client was currently being treated by a HSE psychiatrist for anxiety.

Mr Madden asked Judge Brian O’Callaghan to focus on the findings of the comprehensive probation report before the court in the absence of a psychiatric report.

It outlined the medication the accused was currently on for anxiety and that he had stopped taking prescribed anti-psychotic medication five months previously.

Mr Madden said the man was living with his parents and had no contact with his wife or children since that night.

Counsel said the report stated the HSE mental health service had confirmed the accused did not suffer from any major mental illness, but he did have a history of being treated for depression twelve years ago and was currently being treated for anxiety.

“It is the view of the probation officer that alcohol and anger were the primary causes of this incident and that the accused would be a suitable candidate for community service,” Mr Madden said.

He said probation had carried out a spousal assault risk assessment of his client and a number or risk factors had been identified. He conceded his client had a history of causing physical harm, he minimised his violent actions and he engaged in compulsive thinking and behaviour.

In mitigation, Mr Madden said his client was now being treated by a psychiatrist and was committed to adhering to a court safety order and to Tusla’s recommendations.

He said the man had stopped drinking alcohol since that night and was currently taking part in an assessment for an anger management programme.

Judge O’Callaghan said the evidence was both troubling and frightening.

He commended the woman for reacting “in a most fantastic way” that night – not just from her own personal safety aspect, but as a parent too.

In mitigation, he said the man had entered a guilty plea as early as possible, which was of great value as the woman would have known from early on that she would not be required to go through the trauma of having to give evidence at a trial.

The judge said the early plea was also an acknowledgement by the accused of the hurt and damage he had caused, and it was particularly important as otherwise the trauma would have been prolonged for the victims.

He said the court recognised the seriousness of domestic violence and the higher courts had made it clear that offences of this nature must normally attract a custodial sentence to send out a clear message of deterrent and it was only in particular cases that mitigation would warrant a suspended sentence.

“The fear that he must have engendered in his victims was prolonged in nature – it went from the family home to the car.  The car was stopped, she got out but he continued. He had plenty opportunity to withdraw from his offending conduct but he failed to do so.

“She put herself in danger by getting into the car but she got into it for the sole purpose of protecting her two children.

“The damage caused to these three people by his actions and the details of the medical reports, speak for themselves.

“The idea that the mother of these two children ends up having to hide in an attic because of fear is shocking,” the judge said.

Referring to the probation report, Judge O’Callaghan said he was concerned the accused had displayed a certain lack of empathy for his victims because on more than one occasion he told the probation officer he had a limited recollection of events that night while at the same time he sought to minimise or deny his actions.

“The report states there are issues of power, control, lack of trust and his own low self-worth.  These are frightening and troubling factors in this case,” the judge observed.

He noted that while the accused had co-operated with the Gardaí, he had done so after being caught ‘red-handed’ and he could not expect anything less than an immediate custodial sentence.

‘I thought I was going to die’

The woman broke down and cried as she read her own victim impact statement into evidence.

She said it was not the first she had felt extreme fear because of her husband’s actions.

“The terror of being pushed out of the way and my children being grabbed out of their beds.  My children were crying and screaming and begging him to stop.  He was banging their heads off the wall (on the way out of the house) before throwing them into the car. I got into the car. I remember begging him to stop the car. He became extremely angry and started punching my head, trying to knock me out. I will never forget that night,” she sobbed.

The woman recalled it was icy, dark and snowing at the time.

“I panicked and lifted the children over a wall and lay on top of them in a briar patch. He found us and punched me again.

“I thought I was going to die when he told me to say ‘sorry’ and get into the boot. I knew he wanted to kill me,” she sobbed.

“He told me he wanted to die. My flight or fight response took over and I ran through the fields.

“I rang the Gardai when I got back to my mother’s house. I had to hide in the attic. I could see blue flashing lights and I prayed my children were safe,” she cried.

Since the incident, the woman said her ability to trust people had been affected.

She said she was now receiving counselling for PTSD and had to give up her job due to anxiety for which she was now taking medication.

“I have a severe sense of fear he will come back,” she said.

The woman said her children were traumatised by the actions of their father.

The youngest child still suffers from flashbacks and will not get into a car.

“I remember my older child looking up at me, so scared she thought she was going to heaven.  She has had to attend play therapy sessions to overcome the trauma,” the woman sobbed.

“It has affected their ability to trust people and they are confused about what’s right and what’s wrong.

“It’s been an extremely stressful time for me and I’m constantly double checking door locks and in fear of cars driving slowly past the house.  I’ve had to put my own feelings on hold to help my daughters,” the woman concluded.