Elizabeth Lee
A father of four whose child ate some of his cannabis appeared last week in Carlow District Court, where he pleaded guilty to causing the child suffering or injury.
Solicitor Chris Hogan told the court that the little girl, who was three at the time of the incident, ate the cannabis after she climbed up onto a sofa and found it on a windowsill.
He said the girl’s father usually kept the drugs out of reach, on top of a kitchen press, but because the kitchen was being renovated he had moved it to where the child had found it.
Imposing reporting restrictions to protect the identity of the child, Judge Carthy heard from Mr Hogan that Tusla, the child and family agency, was involved with the family and that the father had left the family home for a period.
Mr Hogan said his client, who has 128 previous convictions, had been a heroin and cannabis user but that he no longer took drugs. He told the court the child was fully recovered from the incident.
Judge Carthy adjourned sentencing so that a probation report could be prepared.
