A 30-year-old Polish woman, a member of the Roma community, was remanded in continuing custody yesterday at Tralee District Court charged with ill-treating her three-year-old daughter, who later died.
Monica Paczkowska, Killeen Woods, Tralee, was charged last week that she wilfully ill-treated a child in her care at the same address in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to the child's health or seriously to affect her wellbeing on August 2nd to August 3rd last.
The charge was brought under Section 246 of the Children Act (2001). The prosecution is understood to be the first of its kind to be brought under this section of the 2001 Act.
The woman's solicitor, Dave Ramsay, said he "was not in a position to oppose or consent to" the State's application yesterday to continue to remand Ms Paczkowska in custody.
However, Mr Ramsay later indicated he would be making a High Court application for bail next week.
Supt Pat Sullivan said he was awaiting instructions from the DPP with regard to a more serious charge.
Judge Leo Malone remanded Ms Paczkowska in custody to Limerick prison to appear before Limerick District Court on August 31st next. He assigned her the necessary interpreting services for that appearance.
Up to a dozen members of the wider Roma community, most of them men, were in court yesterday.
When charged, the defendant had nothing to say in reply, last week's court heard. In court on that date she said through her translator that the child may have fallen and that children fight.
The court heard last week that the woman was facing a community court made up of her own ethnic group and that her life was in danger.