A 37-year-old woman who allowed her son to be beaten and raped by his father at the age of six has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for child cruelty.

The boy's 66-year-old father was last week sentenced to 14 years in jail for rape and cruelty.

Mr Justice Robert Eagar imposed a three-year sentence on the woman, suspending the final 18 months.

He also ordered her not to have any contact with the boy's father on her release.

He said her failure to protect the boy represented the most serious criminal conduct.

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The court was told the woman herself had come from an appalling, dysfunctional background of abuse and was not capable of protecting children.

She had been involved in a series of abusive, exploitative relationships and all five of her children had been taken into care.

The child at the centre of this case was taken into care at the age of eight after confiding in a teacher.

He described being "kicked, hit and thrashed" on an almost daily basis.

He said his father had threatened him and he was very frightened of him.

Later, while in foster care, he revealed that he had been regularly raped by his father.

He also alleged that he had been forced to have sex with his mother and that his father had filmed this and had shown it to another person.

However, the mother was acquitted on the sex charges and was only convicted on a charge of cruelty.

Psychological reports submitted to the court described the woman as having a significant intellectual disability, being highly suggestible and vulnerable to exploitation by others. Psychologists said she had a very limited understanding and a limited capacity to maintain a safe and caring environment for children.

It also said when asked about the abuse of her son she showed "little emotion; no anger guilt or sadness and shed no tears".

It also said she would have been unable to protect her son against a strong authority figure.

In her garda interviews she described how she sometimes got between her partner and her son to stop him from hitting him. However at all times she denied any wrongdoing on her part.

The court heard that at times she would tell the boy they would leave and at other times would tell him: "I love you but I just don't know what to do."

The woman had come from a family where sexual abuse was the norm.

She grew up in the UK and had been abused by her mother's partner from the age of seven and became pregnant at the age of 14.

Passing sentence today Mr Justice Eagar said an aggravating factor in the case was the fact that she did not protect her son apart from one time when she went to a shelter when he was six months old.

However, she had found living alone difficult and had returned to her partner.

The judge said she would have been aware that help was available from social services and from gardaí.

The judge said while it was not for the court to comment on a person's ability to raise children, the opinion in the psychological reports was of some concern.

The reports had stated while she was not likely to engage in wanton cruelty she was not capable of providing care and support to a minor and therefore was at moderate risk of re-offending.

The boy remains in care in a residential unit in the UK.

He gave evidence to the trial earlier this year by video link. Psychological reports indicate he has post traumatic stress disorder and will have numerous difficulties in the future due to the level of abuse he suffered at the hands of his father.