Garda warnings about abuser ignored despite conviction

Donegal child sex abuser Michael Ferry (58) was allowed continue working as caretaker at an Irish language summer school despite being convicted of indecently assaulting a boy, a review has found.

He pleaded guilty in 2002 to abusing the boy at Ard Scoil Mhuire in Gweedore.

In July 2011 he was jailed for 14 years for sexually assaulting four more boys at the school and last December received another seven year concurrent sentence after pleading guilty to abusing a fifth boy.

Following the 2011 convictions, Minister for Justice Minister Alan Shatter ordered an investigation into the handling of the case.

A subsequent report found gardaí had alerted both the school’s directors and the then North Western Health Board (now HSE) about Ferry’s first conviction shortly after it occurred in 2002.

The internal review by the Child and Family agency Tusla, looked at how the case was handled by the North Western Health Board and the HSE.

It also found the health board was contacted twice in 2002 by gardaí expressing concerns Ferry was still working in a caretaking role at the school and other children might be at risk of abuse.

It has also found initial responses by the Health Board did not comply with State’s Children First guidelines.

Another Garda warning in 2005 to the HSE was also ignored with no action taken and no investigation carried out. It was not until 2010 that a proper review of the case took place after new victims came forward.

Ferry is serving 14 years of an 18-year sentence after admitting hundreds of attacks on four boys. He was given the second seven year sentence for attacks on a fifth victim when he pleaded guilty to new charges last December at the Circuit Court in Donegal.

Gardai had already investigated directors at the school who had been contacted in 2002, 2005 and 2006 about Ferry’s child sex abuse to establish whether reckless endangerment was involved. A file was sent to the DPP, who did not bring charges. School directors have always denied any wrongdoing.

A director of the school in 2002 had confirmed that Ferry had no access to children when contacted by gardaí and the case was subsequently closed.

The Tusla review said Ferry’s conviction in 2002 should have alerted the health board to the risk he posed to children and it was not enough to take the word of the school that he no longer had access to children.

The review also found no attempt was made to gather information on Ferry’s family or whether he might have been involved in other areas of work with access to children. It noted he had two sisters with children but they were not spoken to.

However, the review found there was a strong contrast between the response in 2002 and that of 2010 when gardaí again contacted the HSE to tell them Ferry had made admissions to allegations of abuse.

In 2010, the review stated: “The HSE put in place a comprehensive plan to ensure that any adults coming forward following the conviction of the man would be referred to the appropriate services.”

The Child and Family Agency has said their report will be available to those abused by Ferry. Its chief executive Gordon Jeyes said the agency was committed to being transparent and accountable in all its dealings.

"This review has been undertaken by local services in Donegal in order to ensure that all those involved in working with children and families engage in reflective practice and continue to improve the quality of services being offered," he told the Donegal Daily. He commended staff "for the open and honest way in which they engaged with this process and believe that service to children in the area has greatly improved since the tragic events of 2002 and subsequently.

“It behoves all of us as professionals to constantly review our working standards to ensure that the injustices of the past do not continue. The events surrounding this review also remind us of our collective, societal obligations to keep children safe,” he said.

“There is no intention to keep this internal document secret from victims and any request from victims to my office for a copy of the report will be facilitated. It is not normal practice to publish internal staff review documents and it is for this reason that there are no plans for wider publication.”