A 30-year-old woman has been sentenced to five months in prison for stealing €200 worth of goods from a Lidl store in Youghal, Co. Cork. Bridget O’Driscoll, from Waterford, was convicted at Youghal District Court for the theft which occurred in July 2022.
The court heard that O’Driscoll was part of a group of four women who entered the store on Mill Road. CCTV footage showed her carrying a bag of unpaid items through the checkout area. The defendant, a mother of five including a five-month-old baby, was identified as the person carrying the stolen goods.
According to The BreakingNews, despite her defense solicitor James Moore describing her life as “chaotic” at the time of the offense and pleading for leniency due to her family circumstances, Judge Brian O’Shea imposed the prison sentence. The judge noted that O’Driscoll had accumulated 26 previous convictions, including 13 for theft, with three occurring on the same day as the Lidl incident.
Judge O’Shea was particularly critical of using childcare responsibilities as a mitigating factor, stating, “she’s not thinking about the children when she’s stealing, only when she is in court.” He emphasized that a previous suspended sentence had failed to deter her from further theft.
The court set recognisance for appeal at €200 cash in her own bond.