A Dublin woman has claimed she was sexually abused by her three brothers for years, with the knowledge of the rest of her family. Cross-examined by Mr Martin Giblin SC the woman said she was frequently abused by her brothers and "everyone turned a blind eye, including my mother".
The revelation came on the third day of the trial of one of her brothers, who is accused of indecently assaulting her over a five-year period and of sexually abusing her six-year-old daughter.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to 19 counts of indecent assault on the woman and to two counts of sexual assault on her daughter. The woman (29) told Mr Giblin she had a falling out with her mother when she went to live in England with a man the family did not approve of.
She was told by her mother she would only be welcome home if she "got rid of" her unborn child.
She denied she also had a falling out over her friendship with a man who has AIDS.
She said the friendship occurred after she separated from her husband and she didn't believe the man was a drug addict at the time of their friendship. When it was put to her that her mother was a deeply concerned woman who would not go to bed until the last of her children came home, the witness replied: "My mother used to run to bed nearly every night to avoid my father coming home drunk."
The woman said the accused would sexually abuse her in a bedroom she shared with her six sisters.
Asked by Mr Giblin why her sisters were not woken by the sound of her bed moving, she said she didn't know.
She added: "Everything seems to be a blur. I can't even hear what you're saying to me".
The woman said she was first abused at her brother's place of work when she was 11 years old. Pressed by Mr Giblin of details surrounding the incident, she said she couldn't recall. When shown a map of the family home, she broke down and said it was sickening to have to see it. She denied she had once made allegations that her former employer had abused his children or that he had sent her a solicitor's letter.
When Mr Giblin claimed she was making the allegations to get back at her mother, she replied: "I am not lying. I would never put myself and my daughter through this for something like that." The trial continues before Judge Michael White and a jury.