Altnagelvin Hospital.
A woman accused of attacking her partner as he lay in an induced in the intensive care unit at Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry has had her bail conditions altered so he can go live with her.
Patrick Mongan was being treated for serious head and spinal injuries when the alleged incident occurred on 4 January this year.
His partner and sister, Eileen Stokes (29), from Mourne Park in Newtownstewart, Co Tyrone and Bridget Mongan (23), from Stanley’s Walk in Derry, are jointly charged with attempted grievous bodily harm with intent.
They are also accused with assaulting two nurses and a doctor and with disorderly behaviour in the unit.
Both women were remanded in custody when they appeared in court in January.
As part of their bail conditions when released from Hydebank Prison last month, they were banned from all hospitals in the North and ordered to stay away from the alleged victim.
At Derry Magistrates Court today, Resident Magistrate Barney McElholm changed Stokes’ bail conditions so the victim could go live with her again in Newtownstewart.
Mr McElholm took the decision after being informed by Stokes’ solicitor, Keith Kyle, that the victim would not be pressing charges and that he wished to go back and live with her.
Objecting to the bail alteration, a PSNI constable told the court Stokes had a “problem with alcohol” and police feared she would commit similar offences.
Mr Kyle said while the alleged offences were “very serious” they should not be used as “a barrier” to the accused’s application to have her bail conditions altered.
Mr Kyle added there was “no statement of complaint” and the injured party did not intend to play a part in the prosecution.
Derry Courthouse.
Mr McElholm said the injured party would have “no part to play” in the case as he was unconscious at the time of the alleged assault, adding it was in the in the public interest that domestic violence wasw “eradicated.”
After being informed there were “no children involved,” Mr McElholm agreed to the variation in Stokes bail conditions to allow the injured party to return to live with her.
Mr McElholm pointed out if there had been “children involved,” he would not have granted the variation.
He added: “I’ll grant the variation and that is not to belittle the police concerns. I share their concerns.”
Eileen Selina Stokes,(29), with an address in Newtownstewart, and 23-year-old Bridget Patricia Mongan, of Stanleys Walk, are charged with attempted grievous bodily harm, common assault and disorderly behaviour.
The charges relate to an alleged incident in the Intensive Care Unit of Altnagelvin Hospital on January 4.
They were released on their own bail of £100 to appear in court again on March 13 and banned from entering any hospital except in an emergency.
They were released from Hydebank Prison last month and part of their conditions was District Judge Barney McElholm was told that during the attack at Altnagelvin Hospital in Londonderry on Saturday night, medical staff lay across the patient’s head in an attempt to protect him as his partner and sister punched and slapped him and tried to pull out medical drips attached to him.
Bridget Mongan (23), from Stanley’s Walk in Derry, and Eileen Stokes (29), from Mourne Park in Newtownstewart, Co Tyrone, are jointly charged with attempted grievous bodily harm with intent on Patrick Mongan last Saturday night.
They are further charged with assaulting two nurses and a doctor and with disorderly behaviour in the unit.
A police officer told Derry Magistrates Court that Stokes, who has 27 previous convictions, is Mr Mongan’s partner, and Mongan, who has 13 previous convictions, is his sister.
The officer said police responded to a 999 call from hospital staff who reported that the two women had attacked Mr Mongan as he lay seriously ill from injuries received during an earlier, apparently unconnected assault.
The two defendants had been in the unit earlier in the day visiting Mr Mongan but they returned in a drunken condition and punched and slapped him on the head and face as he lay semi-conscious.
Medical staff rushed to the room where they were verbally and physically abused by the defendants. The police witness said the defendants then “began to pull drips attached to the patient which medical staff say caused his condition to become unstable by increasing his blood pressure and his pulse rate”.
One of the nurses lay across the patient’s head to protect him.
The officer said the staff managed to remove the defendants, but they managed to regain entry to the unit by following a doctor after he used his swipe card.
They ran down the corridor chased by staff who prevented them from gaining access to Mr Mongan’s room.
However, Stokes managed to break free and she went into the room where she was seen pulling Mr Mongan across the bed.
The officer said he feared both women would attempt to re-enter the hospital if granted bail and he said, but for the staff’s intervention, the injuries sustained by Mr Mongan during the incident could have been much more serious.
Refusing bail, Mr McElholm said he could imagine in some circumstances people who pulled out medical drips being charged with attempted murder.
“Their behaviour was totally outrageous and but for the timely intervention of the medical staff could have been much more serious,” he said.
Both defendants wept as they were remanded in custody to appear by video-link on January 23.
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