Q. My father, 85 and living on his own, is caught in a very stressful situation. He lives in a private cul de sac with a green area directly outside his house. On a daily basis, groups of 10 kids or more aged seven to 12 play on the green. They invariably enter his garden and destroy shrubs and paintwork. If my father goes out of the house, they shout abuse at him totally unprovoked. Not only is this very upsetting for him, but when they do come into the garden it is very expensive for him to repair the damage. My father really doesn’t have the money to keep repairing the damage. At this point, he is afraid to out of the house because of the harassment from the young people, who appear to be from a different area. Is there any legislations that compels parents to provide adult supervision for their children when playing away from their own front garden?
Dear Reader,
This appears to be a terrifying situation for your father, and it is most unfortunate. If it appears that the matter complained of is an issue of continuing and ongoing anti-social behaviour involving children and is effectively a matter which the Gardaí can deal with.
The Criminal Justice Act, 2006, makes provision for dealing with anti-social behaviour of children. Part 13 of the Act allows the Gardaí to issue anti-social behaviour warnings to children, hold meetings to discuss a child’s anti-social behaviour, call upon a child and his her parents to enter into a good behaviour contract, and apply to the courts for an anti-social behaviour order. These provisions are designed to allow the Gardaí to deal with anti-social behaviour while attempting to keep children out of the criminal justice system.
I can see why the behaviour by the children has caused distress to your elderly father, particularly in circumstances that he is now afraid to go out. That said, it is also accepted that if such behaviour can be dealt with outside the court system, it is preferred. The provisions of the 2006 Act aim to strike a balance between the rights of society and the issues of anti-social behaviour.
With regard to the issue of trespass, again Gardaí have powers to deal with trespassers through private land and prosecute such persons who fail to comply with the directions of the Gardaí.
Further, if necessary, your elderly father should contact a solicitor who can bring the matter to the attention of the parents of the children who may not be aware of the children’s behaviour.
