Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, has been granted a two and a half year care order for a baby boy born earlier this year to a young woman at the centre of the latest abortion controversy.
A judge granted the care order for the baby to Tusla until June 30th, 2017, after hearing submissions from lawyers for Tusla, the child’s mother, Ms Y, and a Guardian ad Litem appointed by the courts to represent the interests of the child.
Tusla had sought a 12-month care order to allow the agency to reassess the situation in a year’s time and this was not opposed by barrister, Esther Early and solicitor, Caoimhe Haughey, who represented the child’s mother, Ms Y.
The court heard that both Ms Early and Ms Haughey had been in contact with Ms Y, but were unable to obtain instructions from her with regard to the Tusla application to seek a year-long care order at the expiry of an interim two-month care order granted in September.
A solicitor for the Guardian ad Litem also made an application that Tusla be granted a care order until the child reached the age of 18 in order to provide security and certainty for the infant.
The judge said he believed a care order until June 30th, 2017, struck a balance between allowing the case to be reassessed with regard to Ms Y’s position while at the same time providing security and certainty for the child.
He said he was conscious that Ms Y was currently carrying the burden of other legal proceedings which related to other sensitive matters.
Last month, the judge granted Tusla an order to allow foster carers to consent to any medical treatment or assessment required in the event of an emergency after they began caring for the baby.
The baby’s mother, Ms Y, a young immigrant, had arrived in Ireland in March seeking asylum and became very distressed when she discovered she was pregnant during a health screening upon her arrival.
Ms Y stated that she had been raped in her own country and sought an abortion but was told that it might be difficult to travel to the UK because of her status and she was provided with counselling by the Irish Family Planning Association.
However, the young woman became increasingly distressed when it became clear that she was unable to travel for an abortion due to the costs involved and the restrictions on her right to travel, and she stated that she was suicidal.
The woman came to the attention of the HSE psychiatric services at about 24 weeks’ gestation when it was deemed too late to abort the pregnancy despite the fact she was deemed suicidal under the provisions of the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act.