Man who allegedly threatened to drag his pregnant partner ‘by her head to abortion clinic’ refused bail

Image credit: Sora Shimazaki via Pexels / Louis Galvez via Unsplash

A disturbing article in the Independent highlights the real and usually under-reported issues of coercion around abortion after a man in his 20s has been refused bail after allegedly threatening to drag his pregnant partner "by her head" to the abortion clinic. 

"A man in his 20s who is alleged to have threatened to drag his pregnant partner to an "abortion clinic" has been refused bail after a judge found the woman was left in fear for herself and her unborn child," the article begins.

"The accused man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty to charges of criminal damage and theft before Tallaght District Court following an alleged domestic incident on Friday, September 12.

Garda Brendan Byrne objected to bail under the O’Callaghan principles, saying gardaí believe the man may not turn up when due in court and was likely to interfere with the complainant.

The woman, who is pregnant, said the accused had jumped on her car, thrown runners around her home, smashed a wardrobe and chandeliers and refused to return her house keys.

She said she was “living in fear for me and my kids and my unborn child”. She also told the court the accused had threatened to drag her "by the hair of her head to the abortion clinic".

The court heard that gardaí found a key to the woman’s home in the accused's pocket during a search the day after the alleged incident.

The accused, represented by defence solicitor Padraig O’Donovan, said any damage was accidental and offered to pay compensation. He told the judge: “If she wants me to stay away, I’ll stay away 100pc", and added he would live with his father if granted bail.

Judge John O’Leary said while the accused is entitled to the presumption of innocence, bail was not an absolute right.

He said the man had admitted taking the woman’s key when he was not entitled to and had not denied making threatening remarks. He noted the case involved alleged coercive behaviour. He added there was a “high likelihood” the accused would interfere with the complainant, who was in “genuine fear for herself and her unborn child”.

“The matter is so fraught,” he concluded, before remanding the man in custody to Cloverhill Prison for DPP directions."

Sandra Parda of the Life Institute commented, saying: “Abortion does not help women. More and more we see horrifying cases like this where women are being failed by abortion legislations, which just allowing them to be subject to all kinds of abuse.”

 “This must stop. Our government must step up and make sure cases like these never happen again. The safety and wellbeing of women should come before protecting abortion, especially as abortion does women no favours.”