*The woman is currently receiving treatment.
A JUDGE has granted a domestic violence order to a woman currently battling ‘Stage 4’ cancer against her ‘emotionally abusive’ and ‘controlling’ husband.
At the Family Law Court, Judge Alec Gabbett granted a Protection Order to the mother who told him that she is currently on sick leave from her job as she has Stage 4 cancer.
Asked by Judge Gabbett what impact her cancer diagnosis had on her husband, the woman replied “no impact”.
Judge Gabbett commented, “that is very strange”.
The woman said that she has been off-sick from her job since last year.
Judge Gabbett said to her “you are very stressed and this is all happening when you have Stage 4 cancer?”
The woman confirmed to Judge Gabbett that she is currently receiving treatment for her cancer. Stage 4 cancer is often defined as an advanced cancer and means that the cancer has spread beyond its original location and into other areas of the body
Judge Gabbett said that in the circumstances he had no difficulty in granting the Protection Order.
Judge Gabbett told the woman “it might be time to say goodbye” to this man and in reply the woman said, “I have told him already”.
Judge Gabbett said “thankfully he doesn’t seem to be physically abusive” and in reply the woman said that what is going on is “more worse”.
In her statement grounding her application for the Protection Order read out in court by Judge Gabbett, the woman said “my husband is emotionally abusive towards me”.
She said, “When I try to talk to him, he just walks out of the house”.
The woman said that her husband shouts at the children “in an indecent manner and is controlling over all aspects of my life”.
She said, “Last Saturday he ran down the stairs screaming at me when I was correcting one of our daughters. I told him not to raise his voice to the children but he just walks away from me”. She said, “The atmosphere in the house is always tense”.
The woman alleged that her husband “doesn’t allow me to sleep”.
The application was made on an ex-parte basis with the other side not present and the woman’s husband will have the opportunity to oppose the granting of a Safety Order in court in July.
If the husband breaches the Protection Order by using or threatening the use of violence against the woman or putting her in fear he can be arrested by Gardai and brought before a court for breaching the Protection Order.
