A 15-year-old boy has pleaded not guilty to assaulting a school principal when it is alleged she tried to protect one of her pupils from a suspected knife attack.
It is claimed the incident took place after the then 14-year-old defendant, from south Dublin, stole his own father's high powered car.
Defence solicitor Aonghus McCarthy told Judge John O'Connor at the Dublin Children's Court that his client was pleading not guilty. The teenager is charged with assaulting the school principal, attempted burglary with intent to attack another boy with a knife, criminal damage as well as car theft and related motoring offences.
Judge O'Connor remanded the boy, who was accompanied to court by a parent, on continuing bail pending his trial which will take place at the juvenile court later this month.
The court also heard that social services are trying to assist the teenager and are addressing educational issues.
Earlier Garda Shirley McCabe had said it would be alleged that at about 9.10am on a date in January this year, the accused teen entered “by breaking a window on a side door of a classroom”.
“He entered the classroom to get into a communal hall,” Gda McCabe had told the court. She had said it was alleged the school's principal “tried to stop him” and a “physical altercation” broke out between her and the young boy.
It was alleged the boy had gone to the school looking for another pupil he had a falling out with previously. He then used abusive language to members of staff and exited via the window he had earlier broken to gain entry.
Members of staff had to hide the youngster that the defendant “was going after” and brought him to a kitchen in the school. However, its alleged the accused then “ran to the front of the school” and made his way to the kitchen window “so he could see in”.
“It is alleged he broke a window of the kitchen and its alleged he waved an implement possibly a knife through the window,” Gda McCabe said, adding that it was also alleged the accused was shouting at the slightly younger boy.
It is also alleged the then 14-year-old had stolen his father's high-powered car and he drove it to the school on the morning of the attack. Afterwards, he allegedly crashed it into another car before he drove home.
As a condition of bail the boy must obey a curfew, has been barred from certain districts. Dublin and he has been warned that he would be held in custody if he broke these terms.
