A mentally-ill teenager was yesterday held in a detention centre because a Dublin hospital did not have a bed for him.
Judge Aingeal Ní Chondúin made a direction that a representative of the Mater hospital attend the teenager's case to explain what help they could give to him.
The 18-year-old youth has severe psychiatric problems and had been transferred to the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) for treatment, having been remanded in custody earlier this year.
Dr Claire McInerney, of the CMH, told the court that the teenager had undergone medical treatment and now needed a "step-down" placement. Judge Ní Chondúin was told, however, that yesterday evening there were no beds for the teenager in the hospital.