Youth who wanted detention sentenced

A homeless youth, who has spent most of his teenage years in detention centres, was yesterday sent to St Patrick's Institution…

A homeless youth, who has spent most of his teenage years in detention centres, was yesterday sent to St Patrick's Institution for nine months, after a judge heard he wanted to be put into custody.

The 17-year-old from Finglas has been put into various detention centres and industrial schools since he was nine years old.

He had committed a string of offences after he was released from St Patrick's last year and had become addicted to cocaine, cannabis, sleeping tablets and various prescription drugs, the Dublin Children's Court heard.

Dublin City Council had also evicted him from his family home over his continued antisocial behaviour, Judge Mary Collins was told.

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The court had heard that on December 12th last the teenager was caught driving a stolen car without a licence or insurance and the previous day a garda had caught him on Sir John Rogerson's Quay with a screwdriver which was to be used in the course of an offence.

On October 16th he was arrested on Grafton Street for stealing a CD from a music shop and on September 23th on Lindsay Road in Glasnevin he was caught with another screwdriver which was to be used in the theft of a car.

The youth, who had 11 previous convictions for car thefts and joyriding, had pleaded guilty to all the offences and because he had no fixed abode was asking to be detained, his counsel, Mr Dermot O'Connell, said.

Mr O'Connell said that since his client was nine he has spent the bulk of his time in detention. He spent two years in an industrial school, was then a term in Oberstown Boys' Centre, followed by a two-year spell in Trinity House Detention Centre and finally was in St Patrick's Institution for one year.

Judge Collins imposed a sentence totalling nine months to be served in St Patrick's Institution.