A 48-year-old garda who assaulted his wife in her childhood home with their young children in the room over 13 years ago has been given a three-month suspended sentence.
Trevor Bolger attacked Margaret Loftus, who was also a garda, after they attended a family party in Co Mayo on 24 October 2012.
Judge Martina Baxter said that he perpetrated an egregious breach of trust and, as a garda, is held to a higher standard.
It was, she said, a serious offence because it was committed by Bolger.
The maximum sentence for the offence is six months.
The judge also said that a custodial sentence was not required because Bolger "stands in the public arena recognising his wrongdoing".
Bolger and Ms Loftus met when they were both stationed in Ballymun Garda Station in Dublin in 2006 and married in 2010.
In October 2012, they attended Ms Loftus' brother's 30th birthday party in her native Co Mayo.
Bolger was very annoyed at having to go to the event, and when Ms Loftus went to talk to members of her family in the pub, he sat at the bar drinking and did not speak to her.
When they got back to her family home, where they were staying, he got angry.
In their bedroom, which was also Ms Loftus' childhood bedroom, Bolger hit his wife on the back and grabbed her hair.
Ms Loftus begged her husband not to hurt her or their young children, who were also in the room.
The assault marked the end of the marriage, and the next day, Ms Loftus' father stood beside her as she told Bolger the marriage was over.
He was interviewed in 2018 and 2019 but denied assaulting his then-wife.
He subsequently admitted what he had done.
Ms Loftus told her former husband that he had done his level best to break her and had made her suffer every single day of her life since she left him.
However, the experience had made her stronger, she added, and she urged all victims of domestic violence to come forward.
In her victim impact statement to the court delivered at a previous hearing last June, Ms Loftus said she had been assaulted in the place that she would have called the safest place on earth.
She said the assault was so violent and terrifying that it ended her marriage.
She added that her fear was heightened because her children were present.
After the assault, she said, she spent the entire night praying and promised God that she would never be in that situation again.
Ms Loftus said she left the marriage as she felt that, if she did not, her life would be at risk.
She told the court she chose not to live in fear and did not want to be an "ad on the telly" for domestic violence.
Ms Loftus also said that her decision to leave had impacted her professional relationships in An Garda Síochána.
"I was supposed to protect the vulnerable," she said, "not be the vulnerable".
She said she felt that her colleagues treated her differently, and there was a stigma attached to her.
She also asked how her ex-husband could continue to protect the vulnerable when he had assaulted her.
Ms Loftus told the court that being on the other side of the fence was very difficult, and she felt the system that she used to protect was used against her.
She said it had taken 13 years to get to this point, but "truth and justice must always prevail in the end".
In mitigation, Senior Counsel Cathleen Noctor said that Bolger was the youngest of seven children and cared for his elderly father.
In the aftermath of the assault, he had admitted himself to St Patrick's Hospital as he was suicidal.
She read numerous testimonials from friends, family and sporting organisations he was involved with.
The court also heard that he no longer drinks alcohol.
She asked the court to take into account his guilty plea, his 20-year record of service in An Garda Síochána, and his positive contribution to society both within the gardaí and in the community.
Watch: 'We really need to take a look at the structures in place,' says Margaret Loftus
Ms Noctor said that he had written a letter of apology to Ms Loftus and was offering €6,000 in compensation, which she was willing to accept on behalf of their children.
Bolger was promoted to the rank of detective and was attached to Howth Garda Station in August 2018.
He was suspended in December 2018 and was sent forward for trial on indictment in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.
He has no previous convictions.
Criticism of plea deal
Ms Loftus criticised a plea deal made in the case which allowed him to admit to a less serious offence.
She said that once she heard that Bolger would be permitted to plead guilty to a section 2 assault, "the least serious assault," she knew justice would not be delivered.
"When a victim is standing after a sentence and telling them the criminal process is as damaging or more than the abuse itself, then they really need to take a look at the structures in place"
The maximum sentence for the offence is six months in prison.
Ms Loftus also claimed that the investigation team had to carry out the investigation in secrecy, that "they were met with resistance and long legal arguments which complicated the process."
Her experience of the criminal justice system, she said, has been every bit as damaging as the abuse itself and that once the plea deal was made, she resigned herself to the belief that justice was never going to be done.
"When a victim is standing after a sentence and telling them the criminal process is as damaging or more than the abuse itself, then they really need to take a look at the structures in place and the judicial system and see where it's going wrong because something is terribly wrong here," she said.
She also said she was happy the proceedings were over, but she said she "feels let down by criminal justice system and not the only person who has."
Ms Loftus said there was a six-year gap between date of assault in October 2012 and "the date that I had to personally email my own statement to Garda Commissioner’s office".
"I imagine the blanks will be filled in in time but it is certainly not the case that I sat at home and did nothing," she said.
When asked why there was a six year gap between the assault and the garda investigation she replied: "that’s for another day."
Afterwards gardaí thanked Ms Loftus for coming forward and acknowledged "her bravery and courage."
Chief Superintendent Ian Lackey said gardaí have "zero tolerance for domestic abuse in society and by its own personnel, as in this case."
He said Ms Loftus had shown to every other victim out there that they would be listened to and heard.
He appealed to any other victims to come forward saying "you have done nothing wrong, you are not alone and you will be believed."
Garda Headquarters would not comment on the claims made by Ms Loftus outside the court but stressed that "without commenting on any specific investigation, due to the very nature of these crimes, investigations into domestic abuse are carried out in the utmost confidence."
They also said that Commissioner Justin Kelly has regularly spoken about the need for An Garda Síochána to improve its initial response to victims of domestic violence.
It also said the former Commissioner Drew Harris sent several messages to all garda personnel asking them to report if they had been a victim of domestic violence, saying that they would be supported by the organisation, and that their complaints would be investigated regardless of whether the suspect was a garda.
