By Eimear Dodd
A man who punched and slammed his then partner’s head into a bathroom sink assaulted his sister and father later that same day, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard.
The 29-year-old pleaded guilty to three counts of assault causing harm on June 7, 2026 at two addresses in Dublin. He can’t be named for legal reasons.
An investigating Garda told Emmet Nolan BL, prosecuting, that Gardaí, were called to a domestic incident around 11pm. They were told by the man’s father that his son had entered the property, looking for his partner.
The man’s partner had gone to his father’s home after he assaulted her earlier that day, the court heard.
The man attempted to go upstairs, and his sister tried to block him. He grabbed her arms and threw her downstairs, leaving her with bruising and soft tissue injuries to her legs. His sister went to hospital, but left before receiving treatment.
His father and a third party managed to remove the man from the house. The defendant punched his father to the side of his head. His father then struck him in self-defence.
The man fled the house and was arrested a short time later by Gardaí.
The court heard that earlier in the day, the man struck his partner on the face a number of times, then threw household items at her in their home at another location.
She went to the bathroom to clean up, where her partner grabbed her by the back of the head and banged her against the sink several times.
She managed to leave the house, then went to the home of the man’s father. She was later taken to hospital, where she was treated for swelling around her eyes, cuts to the face, bruising and a fracture to a nasal bone.
The man was assessed by a doctor at the Garda station and was deemed unfit for interview for six hours.
He was interviewed once, and while he answered questions, the man denied any knowledge of the assault on his partner.
Photos of the injuries to the man’s partner and sister were handed to the court.
A victim impact statement from the man’s former partner was handed to the court. Mr Nolan said the woman did not wish for her statement to read aloud, and he drew the court’s attention to the lasting psychological effects she experienced and that she’s since had to move address.
The man has three previous convictions, including one for assault causing harm and two for drugs offences.
The investigating garda agreed with Keith Spencer BL, defending, that the man had started drinking earlier in the day and that he relapsed into taking drugs and alcohol on the day.
It was accepted that the man’s partner said he was acting strange before the assault started.
Mr Spencer said his client has a work history as a baker, but had to leave due to an injury. He said his client is clean from drugs and alcohol while in custody and handed in clean urine analysis.
Counsel said the man has been using his time in custody to reflect on his addiction issues. His family remain in contact with his former partner and children and the man wishes to be reintegrated into their lives.
The man took the stand and said he was “very sorry for my actions on the night” after reading the victim impact statement and looking at the photos of the injuries.
He said, “I’m very sorry, I never meant for that to happen. I shouldn’t have acted that way and I’d like to give an apology to the mother of my kids. I hope we can continue to work for the kids in future”.
The man said he wanted to be there for his children and would “love” to go back to “being a happy family, even better”. He said he would respect it if his partner did not want that, but hopes they can move forward for the sake of the children.
He said he intends to never go near drink or drugs again, wants to find work to provide for his family and is willing to engage with anger management programmes.
Mr Spencer asked the court to order a probation report and to allow his client to be remanded on bail while probation assessments take place.
Judge Fiona O’Sullivan declined the defence’s request to remand the man on bail, noting that the gravity of the offence meant a custodial element to the sentence was likely.
Adjourning finalisation of sentence until December, she directed the preparation of a probation report and requested the Probation Service assess the man for anger management and other relevant programmes and complete a spousal risk assessment.