A schoolgirl who described her mother as "vermin" has called on Ennis Circuit Court not to let her go free and unpunished for the neglect of her seven children over a nine year period.
Her 39 year old mother along with her former partner has pleaded guilty to the charges and will be sentenced at a later date.
The school girl, now 17, told the court that at the age of 10, she was left to care for her infant sister, who had been born prematurely
Wearing her school uniform in court she said she didn’t know how to hold the baby or change her nappy and that they didn’t have things like a steriliser or a cot.
The 17 year old, described as a mother figure to her siblings, said her mother was cruel and evil who was good at manipulating others.
She told the court that the 39 year old and her former partner used to go out drinking in the day leaving no food in the house and warned the children that if they didn’t say everything was fine – then social workers would take them away and burn the home down.
The teenager’s mother has pleaded guilty to the neglect and ill treatment of the five girls and two boys, over nine years at locations in Clare from March 2001 to July 2010.
Her former partner and the father of six of the seven children also pleaded guilty to the same offences.
The court heard that alcohol was a huge factor in the case and that the mother would drink on a daily basis.
Judge Carroll Moran said it was a very difficult case and he adjourned sentencing to February 25th.
