A lawyer complained today that a girl testifying in a child abuse case had to return to the same home where the accused worked after the court sitting.
Lawyer Edward Gatt also said the demeanor of the girl, who testified via videoconferencing, indicated that she was feeling intimidated.
He was speaking during the compilation of evidence against a care worked who stands charged with slightly injuring two children after they caused a ruckus at the residential home on 18 September 2015. Two siblings and another girl gave evidence today, revealing the anguish of children living in such homes under care order.
The court had previously heard how an 11-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl were causing a ruckus and were told off by two carers. The children became unruly and aggressive, and started hitting the carers and throwing toys at them. At one point the boy became so enraged that he rushed one of the carers. The woman (the accused) pushed him and he hit a TV unit. She then allegedly twisted the girl's arm to subdue her. The children were later taken to a health centre where they were found to have suffered slight injuries. The boy had traces of blood in his liver.
The boy's mother took the witness stand first. She said children staying at the home often went hungry and lacked the necessary personal items.
The woman said there were several incidents where her children were beaten by the carers. "Every time I went to speak to the management I was simply told that they deserved it because they had been naughty."
The mother said such events were traumatic for her children. She said her children are now living with her and she is working fewer hours and taking good care of them. "Social workers come to visit every so often but everything is fine."
Replying to questions by defence lawyer Johan Borg, the mother said her son did not suffer from any psychological conditions. She said the second care worker involved in the incident, who is not accused of anything, had verified the boy's version of events. "My son was terrified because he was always being beaten up inside the home. He was weeping and weeping."
The boy was summoned to testify next. He said he was not happy living at Fra Diegu because this meant that he could not be with his mother. The children there would sometimes fight or tease each other.
On 18 September he and another girl, who is unrelated to him, were playing loudly. "We were shouting and jumping. She (the accused) told us to be quiet but we became even naughtier." The boy said the accused then brought his sister from another ward to calm him down but he would have none of it. He said he started throwing toys at the accused, who retorted with disparaging words against his mother (f'**** ommok). "I was so angry that I started hitting my sister as well. Then I ran out of the flat and ran around the convent. The accused told me that I would have to go over her to get back in. So I pushed her and went inside."
The boy said he started throwing toys again, hitting the accused on the head. The accused then pushed him against a TV unit and twisted the other girl's arm, subduing her to the ground. The boy said he then stole the other carer's mobile phone and called his mother. The boy admitted that he and the girl had also assaulted the second carer.
Asked by Dr Gatt, who is appearing parte civile for the boy's mother, the boy said there were at least three carers who had hit him on other occasions, including the accused. He claimed he had also been abused, including bitten, by the other children.
When Dr Debono suggested that the boy had signed a declaration admitting to having lied on the incident, the boy said he had done no such thing. When the declaration was shown to him, he insisted that the handwriting was not his. "This looks like it was written by a chicken," he said, pointing out that his handwriting was much neater. He said it was not true that he had apologized for lying.
The court, having asked the boy to write something down, noted that his handwriting was different to the one found on the declaration.
The boy's sister, 13, testified next. She confirmed that her brother and the other girl were playing loudly. "The accused came to fetch me because my brother was hitting her and the other carer and she could not calm him down. When I went to the flat he started hitting me because he was angry," she said, adding that these were punches in every direction.
"At one point my brother hit a table and a knife fell to the floor. The accused thought he had been carrying the knife and pushed him aggressively." At the same time, the other girl was still hitting the accused, who manage to subdue her by twisting her arm.
The girl also said she was unhappy at the home. "This was not my place."
The fourth person to testify was the 14-year-old girl who was involved in the fracas. "We became hyper and were shouting and clapping. The carers wanted us to go to bed but we did not listen to them."
The girl confirmed that she and the boy had hit the carers. "I stopped but the boy kept hitting them."
The witness, who, as Magistrate Josette Demicoli pointed out, seemed anxious, said both carers had pushed them but could not remember the details.
Dr Gatt said the witness' demeanour could indicate that she was intimidated. The girl said no one from the home had told her what to say in court.
She said it was true that she had apologised to the management, out of her own free will, for not saying the truth but said the facts of the incident had occurred as described. What she had not initially told the managers was that the second carer (not the accused) had told her and the boy earlier to throw a tantrum.
Dr Gatt complained that the witness, a minor, would have to return to the home right after the sitting, where she came face to face with the accused on a daily basis.
The case continues on 9 June. Inspector Robert Vella is prosecuting.
from The Malta Independent http://ift.tt/1Wv77hp
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