Nun 'force-fed boy Marmite and physically abused him' in care home

Court: Lord Drummond Young refused the civil action.© STV

A former resident of a care home claims a nun force-fed Marmite and subjected to years of physical abuse.

Brian Daly raised a civil action against the Poor Sisters of Nazareth over his treatment in the home in Aberdeen.

The 43-year-old was placed into care when a child because of his parents' mental health problems.

During his four years at Nazareth House, Mr Daly claims Sister Mary Margaret, a member of the order, punched and kicked him on a regular basis, hit him with a hairbrush and forced him to stand outside in a "state of undress".

On Friday, Lord Drummond Young stated at the Court of Session that the action could not proceed because too much time had passed between the incident and the case.

In his decision, the judge stated Mr Daly said he was "ill treated and abused" during a period of four years at the orphanage, which shut down several years ago. The former resident claimed "Sister Mary Margaret also punished him by shutting him in darkened rooms, including the laundry room, for several hours. On two occasions he was put in a small mortuary area. One night he was placed in a dark and disused part of the building."

The judge heard that as a result of the experience Mr Daly turned to solvent abuse in his teenage years, before later being diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder in 2004.

Mr Daly claimed his experiences at the him had left him "terrified" with a "fear of the dark in adulthood." Lord Drummond Young also stated in his decision "[Mr Daly] was force-fed Marmite as a punishment, which made him sick. Such punishments were standard in the home."

Mr Daly left the home in 1979, returning to his mother in Glasgow before being moved to a hostel in the city. Mr Daly turned 18 in 1985, when the judge stated he could have first taken action against the home and Sister Margaret Mary. Lord Drummon Young found that the initial three-year time bar period for raising the civil action would have expired in October 1988.

The former resident claimed that he was not aware allegations of abuse in orphanages run by nuns would be treated seriously until in 1997 the now-defunct News of the World printed a story on the subject, at which point he contacted a lawyer who raised the action in 2000, before the time-bar from that publication of the story ran out.

However, Lord Drummond Young did not accept this as an "adequate" explanation and refused the action, which was also against Aberdeen City Council that was meant to oversee the conduct of those in charge of caring for children at the home.

In 2000, one of the members of the order at the Aberdeen home, Sister Alphonso, was convicted of three charges relating to “cruel and unnatural treatment” of children at the home 1965 and 1973. Lord Drummond Young said evidence provided in that trial had been referred to in this case.

The Court of Session judge concluded that he was "bound to apply the law" and, as a result, his case is "plainly time-barred" and that there was "no basis for the court's exercising its discretion" regarding the time limit.

He added: "I would emphasize that in so holding I am not expressing any view about the pursuer's underlying case. My criticisms go to the way in which that case is pled, which is in my opinion seriously inadequate."

IN DETAIL

In full: Court of Session abuse decision

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