Chief Justice revokes jail sentence given to mother

A mother who had been given a one-week jail sentence for failing to take her sons to see their father was acquitted after an appeals court heard she had a serious eye infection.

The children, now aged 11 and 16, should have been handed over to their father near the Ħamrun police station last December 30, according to the separation contract. However, on the day in question the woman failed to turn up. She had sent an SMS to her estranged husband but did not say why she was cancelling the meeting.

The man turned up for the meeting and then filed a police report when the children were not brought to him.

The woman was arraigned and sentenced last February. She filed an appeal arguing that she could have never been found guilty because she had a serious eye infection.

Chief Justice Vincent De Gaetano, hearing the appeal, pointed out that there were a number of issues both before and after the separation that led to tensions even though the couple have split up. That was having a detrimental effect on the children.

Although the mother had taken them regularly to meet their father, such encounters were often just a short exchange of words and sometimes the children did not speak to their father in the most complimentary manner, besides refusing to meet him.

However, the Chief Justice pointed out that, although the mother could have given the reasons to her estranged husband, her justification for not turning up for the meeting was legally valid because she had been suffering from a serious eye infection for two days and had been ordered by her doctor not to go out.

The court, therefore, upheld the appeal and revoked the prison sentence.

Lawyer Anġlu Farrugia was defence counsel.