West of Ireland couple sentenced after children found living in squalor

A couple at Castlebar Circuit Court has been sentenced for child neglect after their two young autistic children were discovered living in severely unsanitary conditions. The 40-year-old father received an 18-month custodial sentence, with one year suspended, while his 37-year-old wife was handed a fully suspended two-year sentence, suspended for four years. Both pleaded guilty to two counts each of wilful neglect between September 2020 and September 2021. The court heard that social workers found the family home filled with animal faeces, dried vomit, and flies, with conditions described as a health hazard. Staff at the children's school and crèche, concerned about poor hygiene and developmental delays, referred the matter to Tusla, leading to the children's placement in foster care in September 2021. Judge Eoin Garavan praised school and crèche workers for their intervention while criticising Tusla's supervision lapses. He noted the parents' mental health difficulties and early guilty pleas, stating the mother required treatment rather than punishment.