Shane Phelan: Troubled teen was abandoned a week after action promised

The west Dublin teenager suffered from Asperger's Syndrome, a form of autism, and had been in trouble since the age of 13 when he was caught selling heroin to undercover gardai.

The condition meant he had difficulty understanding the consequences of his actions and was easily led by others.

At the time, his latest offence was travelling as a passenger in a stolen vehicle, dangerous driving and possessing a blade as a weapon.

His parents had not been able to cope with his behaviour and had relied on the help of social workers for the previous four years.

When the case came before the children's court, the HSE promised to throw the kitchen sink at it. Several undertakings were made to the judge. The risk factors in his case were to be identified, and ongoing training as to how to cope was to be provided to his parents.

A package of supports for training and education relevant to John was also to be drawn up.

Then, inexplicably, and only a week later, social services told his family it was closing the case.

The boy's solicitor, Gareth Noble, is unsure to this day what happened. Had John's case somehow been reprioritised to the extent that he was no longer deemed at risk?

No concrete reason was given. A letter to his parents from an HSE official wished them "all the best for the future".

"I don't know why they did it. They have never explained why they did that," said Mr Noble.

"They would never admit to me or put it in writing that this child is not getting a social worker because they have been overtaken by somebody else."

The solicitor said he was not privy to the internal grading social workers used to prioritise cases.

"But the proof seems to be that he was of no priority given that they closed his file within seven days of them making certain commitments," he said.

That was 2010, and things have not gone well for John or his family since then.

He now has 33 criminal convictions, including several for assault. The most recent was for causing €5,000 worth of damage during an arson attack, which landed him with nine months' detention.

* The name of the boy has been changed to protect his identity