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A 17-year-old boy, who allegedly “traveled the country” and put the public at risk, became the first minor to face a court accused of violating the new Covid-19 movement restriction laws.
The boy, who cannot be named because he was a minor, was charged Friday with three counts of violating the Health (Preservation and Protection and Other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest) Act, 2020.
Members of his family have been infected with the coronavirus, they told the Dublin Children’s Court.
Violations of the new laws aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus are alleged to have occurred in Clondalkin and Blanchardstown in Dublin on April 28 and three days earlier, and in Co Limerick on April 27.
Garda Gary Farrell opposed the bond and cited the teen’s 18 arrest warrants for failing to appear in court for other cases, from February 2017 to March this year.
He told Judge Brendan Toale that the teenager’s family has been affected by the pandemic, but that the boy was driving across the country “posing a danger to everyone with whom he is in contact.”
He is traveling across the country in MPVs (mechanical powered vehicles), posing a risk to the public not only when traveling, but also by spreading Covid-19, he said.
Defense attorney Sandra Frayne said those charges were subsumed under other issues and that she had a presumption of innocence.
He also faces 26 other new charges of theft, possession of cannabis, dangerous driving, and car crimes, such as not having a license or insurance. These crimes allegedly occurred between March 12 and April 27 of this year.
His lawyer asked that the teenager whose mother was present at the hearing be released on bail.
He asked the judge to note that all of his arrest warrants had been resolved and that there were none “live” at this time. He has found a one-week detention period difficult because he was the only foreign national there at the time.
He also realized the consequences of the pandemic that had affected his own family. The teen’s record of going to court far exceeded the boy’s number of non-appearances. He had made three out of four of his court appointments, he estimated.
Judge Toale released bail, but ordered that the teenager remain within three miles of his home and comply with Covid-19 guidelines during the health emergency.
You cannot drive a motor vehicle and must obey the 10 p.m. curfew. at 6 a.m. in his house.
The case resumes in two weeks when the court will decide whether your bond will be revoked for violating the terms of the bond, repeatedly violating the curfew and driving a car while prohibited, in relation to other theft charges.
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