Progress made by teenager delights judge

The "extraordinary" progress made by a disturbed teenage girl showed what could be achieved when the appropriate facilities were put in place, a High Court judge said yesterday. Her case led to three Government Ministers facing possible contempt of court last year.

The 17-year-old girl, who had been described as one of the most disturbed children to come before the court, has made great progress since she was placed in a controlled therapeutic unit (CTU) last October.

She thanked Mr Justice Kelly yesterday for all he had done for her and said she intended to return to school and hoped eventually to qualify as a social worker.

Appearing relaxed and confident, the girl told the judge: "I just want to thank you for dealing with my case. You've helped me an awful lot more than any judge has helped me before. I feel a lot better in myself now."

She said the counsellor allocated to her had also helped her. She was also pursuing a computer course and planned to do another course before returning to school in September.

"I want to do my Leaving Cert because I want to train to be a social worker," she added. The girl said she had also been learning to budget her money.

The judge congratulated her on the progress made and paid tribute to health board staff and others involved in her care. "I hear very few happy stories here, a lot involving human misery, and this looks like a success story," he said.

The girl was born to a teenage mother, who rejected her and placed her in foster care when a year old. She was sexually abused as a child and later involved in prostitution and drug and alcohol abuse. At one point she drank a bottle of spirits a day. She was taken into health board care at the age of 10.

When the case came before the court last year, she had twice tried to hang herself. In the absence of any appropriate facility, she was placed for a time in a State remand centre and then moved to the locked ward of an adult psychiatric hospital with 29 mentally-ill adults. She was later placed in a CTU provided on foot of a court order but escaped on a number of occasions.

Last October Mr Justice Kelly noted that if the girl had received the treatment recommended for her by a child psychiatrist in 1996, it was doubtful she would be in such a position.

The unit manager of the CTU yesterday outlined a three-phase exit programme for the girl, which will culminate in her living independently when she reaches 18 later this year.

Approving the exit plan, Mr Justice Kelly said it was a tribute to the girl herself and all involved with her that such a transformation had been achieved. She was taken back from the threshold of disaster.

This case showed what could be achieved if the appropriate facilities were put in place and when there was a measure of cooperation from the children themselves.

The girl had been through "a dark night", but morning had dawned for her and he hoped her future would be bright. He returned the matter for review on July 30th.