South Dublin County Council breached the human rights of a young Traveller with cerebral palsy living in "exceptional" overcrowded conditions, a High Court judge has ruled.
The court was told that Ellen O'Donnell (15), a wheelchair user, lives with eight other family members in a two-bedroom mobile home on a temporary halting site in Tallaght.
Mr Justice John Edwards said he believed the girl's rights under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights were being breached in this case where it was accepted the living conditions were "unfit for human habitation".
"What is the point of having a wheelchair-adapted mobile home if it is so crowded with people that the wheelchair-bound occupant cannot move around?" the judge asked. On that basis, he would grant a declaration that Ellen and her family should be placed in adequate temporary accommodation pending their placement in permanent accommodation later this year.
The judge criticised the family's own failure to accept any maintenance responsibility for their mobile home. However, while this could reflect a "hand-out mentality", there was also perhaps a "genuine difficulty" given the lack of formal education of Ellen's parents Mary and Patrick O'Donnell, concerning lack of awareness of how to access the necessary services.
