The children, a girl and a boy, were 8 1/4 and 3 1/4 respectively at the date of the alleged wrongful removal. They had lived in the United States and Ireland.
The parents were married and had joint rights of custody. They travelled to Ireland separately in January 1994 since the father was facing serious criminal charges in the United States. Shortly thereafter, following repeated incidents of physical abuse, the mother obtained a protective order against the father.
The Irish social services agencies then became involved as concerns were raised as to the care given to the children. Further problems arose when the father destroyed possessions in the former matrimonial home. In November 1997 the mother and her new boyfriend took the children to the United States, the mother’s State of origin.
The father applied for the return of the children under the Convention.
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