A mother has told the Dublin Children's Court that she cannot sleep at night because she is afraid her son will kill her. The 17-year-old west Dublin teenager was before the court yesterday for a case review over his conviction for assaulting his mother.
The teenager had been placed on a probation bond last year for the assault and since then had done well in school and had co-operated with probation officers. However, Judge Mary Collins also heard that the boy's mother no longer wanted to have him at home because she was frightened of him.
She said that there were threats to kill her and he frequently brandished knives at her.
Describing her son as manipulative, she said he behaved well in front of people outside the family, but at home, he made threats with knives and she was afraid he would kill her. "My worry is the threats are ongoing in the home, this is not the first time the knives have appeared. I cannot sleep at night," she said.
The court heard that the youth was examined by a specialist who concluded that he did not have any psychiatric problems. However, the mother had been told by the psychiatrist not to allow her son to join the Reserve Defence Force (RDF) as he had wished. The psychiatrist told her he "must not be allowed near weapons."
The teenager, who is now in temporary accommodation, told the court that he had problems at home and difficulties in controlling anger and frustration.
He said recently he had developed a new technique to stop him from physically taking out his aggression on family members. If he felt he was going to lose control he would cut himself instead to stop him from harming others.
Judge Collins said he needed help and refused to finalise the case. She released him on bail pending efforts to find alternative accommodation.