Domestic Abuse: Woman in Ireland alleges ex-partner threatened her life over toddler son’s tracksuit

I recently read an article in the Irish Times newspaper about a domestic abuse story, and reminded me of what happened to my late friend John who lived in another state. John told me he left a 3 year abusive relationship with a guy who used to get drunk and punch John in the face, broke many bones in John's body, and pushed him down the stairs, causing a concussion and breaking several bones.  In the 1990s, because John lived in  (conservative) Tennessee, police dismissed it because he was gay and in a relationship and never arrested the partner. John told me he was told to stop calling the police. They always left him to suffer until the ambulances arrived over and over again.   ** I know it happens around the world, but the article reminded me that many people need help. Today's blog shares info, and that woman's story.   

WHAT IS IT? - Domestic abuse is a pattern of behavior in any relationship used to gain or maintain power and control over an intimate partner or family member. Forms of Domestic Abuse include: 

1. Physical abuse: Hitting, slapping, kicking, shoving, or using physical force and weapons to cause injury.
2. Emotional and psychological abuse: Insulting, constant criticism, public embarrassment, and threats of harm to loved ones or pets. 
3. Sexual abuse: Unwanted sexual contact, forced sexual acts, or rape. 
4. Financial and economic abuse: Controlling access to money, preventing a partner from getting a job, or draining shared bank accounts. 
5. Coercive control and tech abuse: Isolation from friends and family, constant surveillance, tracking via digital devices, and severe restrictions on daily activities.

WHOM TO CALL- 1-800-799-SAFE- the Domestic Abuse hotline in the U.S. 

ON-LINE HELP - National Domestic Violence Hotline https://www.thehotline.org 

SOME U.S. STATES ALSO HAVE RESOURCES SET UP

Woman alleges ex-partner threatened her life over toddler son’s pink tracksuit 

Woman says she suffered black eyes, swollen lip and coercive control throughout relationship

The Irish Times, Mary Carolan, Sun Sept 27 2026

A woman who said her ex-partner threatened to “slaughter” her and “end her life” when objecting to their son being dressed in a pink tracksuit has secured a protection order against the man.

The woman told the emergency domestic violence court at Dolphin House in Dublin that she is “very afraid” of the man.“There have been times when I thought he was going to kill me,” she said.

The man subjected her to physical and verbal abuse and coercive control throughout their relationship, the woman told Judge Gerard Furlong, adding that she suffered black eyes, a swollen lip and lost “chunks of hair”.

She said he assaulted her “a lot”, including strangling her once when she was pregnant, and that “there would be times he would attack me and his family would have to pull him off me”.

Their relationship ended some months ago but when the man had their child recently, he phoned the woman asking what was she doing putting a pink tracksuit on his son. She said the man told her the toddler “is a boy, not a girl”.

He told her the tracksuit “is in the bin” and he would send a video showing what he had done to it, she said. He warned her that if anyone came to get the child, there would be “no talking”. She said he called her a prostitute and threatened to “split” her throat and her mother’s. He said he would “slaughter” her and end her life, adding: “Don’t think I won’t.”

During their relationship, she said, he would not let her work, controlled her money and refused to allow her to have a phone apart from a Nokia, which he later smashed. He would smash things if she did not have his dinner ready and required her to iron his clothes “and do anything he asked”.

The judge said the evidence showed a “clear history” of coercive control and that he would grant a protection order. The woman thanked him, became distressed and her hands shook as she wiped away tears.