A 16-year-old girl who has repeatedly gone missing from care was caught selling crack cocaine on Dublin’s O’Connell Street, a court has heard.
The girl, who cannot be named because she is a minor, appeared before Judge Paul Kelly at the Dublin Children’s Court on Tuesday to face fresh drug charges. It came just over a week before she goes on trial for cocaine dealing.
In the latest case, she was charged with possessing cocaine and having it for sale or supply. A contested bail hearing was told the substance was tested and found to contain cocaine, with gardaí suspecting it to be crack.
It was noted that Tusla applications have been made under the Child Care Act for a more appropriate placement for the girl, which could be affected if she were remanded in custody to the Oberstown detention campus for children.
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She was arrested in the early hours of Tuesday and held pending her court appearance.
There was an objection to bail on the new charges and an application to revoke the bail attached to her forthcoming hearing for cocaine dealing and damaging a desk at a Garda station in January.
Garda Finbar Thompson said there were significant “concerns for her safety” following the girl’s latest arrest. The suspected crack supply was estimated to be worth €240, the court heard.
Thompson said the girl had gone missing from her accommodation in Dublin or breached her curfew 17 times in the past 18 days and on 67 occasions overall. However, he conceded to defence counsel Orla Doolin that the teenager had always returned.
Garda Sgt Chris Jones said the bag seized from the teenager contained “15 individual street deals, not simply one block of crack”.
He agreed with counsel that it was dark, but said there was lighting in the area and the girl was recognisable.
The barrister submitted that, given the value of the substance in the new charge, the girl, if convicted, was unlikely to face a custodial sentence. It was also stressed that the teenager still enjoyed the presumption of innocence.
The judge declined the request to deny bail, but warned that he would be “seriously inclined to do so” if the girl continued to break the terms, which included a ban on going to the O’Connell Street area.
Despite her track record, he said he would allow her a final opportunity to comply. Bail was granted and the teenager was warned to comply with the conditions, including a curfew.
