Paddy's day incident with the Gardai

Strepsils

I duno what exactly im looking for here, more so a better understanding of what happens and where it leaves us i guess.

Anyway, small incident on Paddy's day with the Gardai.

Myself & my GF were walking home after being in the City for the parade and hanging with friends afterwards. It was late in the evening, roughly 9.30PM when just the 2 of us were chatting, walking down O'Connell street which was fairly dead at the time when 2 female Gardai were walking ahead of us. At the time we were just talking about the day & i said "im sorry if it was a little boring" as it was my GF's first paddys day in Ireland ( Shes from the US) and we just chilled with my friends for the most part.

Anyway, joking i said "You could always kick one of the garda in the arse to livin it up", at this point the gaurds were approx 6/7ft in front of us when she jokingly mimicked kicking one by raising her foot.

With her look the guard turned around & caught her, asked what she doing a preceded to go crazy at her.

Once she heard my GF's accent she went on to say how much cheek she had doing that behind her back in a foreign country. Then asked if she was here for Paddy's day or Studing or what (GF's studying). She went even crazier saying how she's a disgrace, coming over to MY country to study and do something so disrespectful and the fact the shes also a minor (17 for another month) letting her college down etc...

Anyway, GF took a ear bashing after giving the guard all her details. Gaurd handed back her student ID card & told her she will recieve a court summons in the post shortly & will be notifying her college about her behavier.

It was kinda a stupid thing to do, we understand that but we meant no harm and tried to explain ourselfs but she was'nt having any of it. Would'nt even listen to me. GF's in absolute bits since, shes affraid it will affect her visa/college/criminal record etc etc... I cant even asure her anything as i dont know much about the system here.

Im 20 & have never had so much to even deal with a garda myself or the legal system here. I really should know a thing or two but unfortunatly i dont, so we're just wondering, what exactly is going to happen? I understand she will recieve a summons in the post within 21 days and thats about it. We dont even know what law she broke, attempted assault? Really dont know.

Since she's 17 also, can she even go to court? She wont even have a parent or guardian as shes studing here & living alone.

Also, she will be returning home for the summer, what happens if the court date is durin then? Can it be changed or anything?

What about appeals too? It was a stupid thing to do, really stupid actually but is it not abit harsh & especially the way the garda dealt with it.

For the record, GF was'nt drinking or anything, she's never got in trouble here or at home before for anything. She's a straight top student, got into a top college/course here at such a young age & is living indepently for the first time.

Can someone shed some light please!

Thanks

MagicMarker

I don't think anything will happen.

Pretty fúcking retarded by both of you though.

TheNog

+1 it was a retarded thing to do

Imagine there being consequences for embarassing someone in public. Why is that people seem to think its ok to pretend to hit a Garda or to make rude gestures behind their back. I bet you or your girlfriend wouldnt have done to a group of hoodies or rough looking bikers.

As she is 17 yrs old she will not be prosecuted in court. She will be dealt with vua Juvenile Liason Scheme which will be a caution only.

tenchi-fan

from your comments it seems you don't realise how serious it is!

She definitely wouldn't have done it to a US cop, and an Irish girl would probably end up in guantanamo bay if she did it to an American cop.

is the summons written in stone yet? Is there any possibility she could apologise to the guards properly, maybe get some one she trusts in the college to meet the guards with her and give her a character reference.

Croc

Apologizing never hurts, does not guarantee the desired results thou (i.e. no prosecution). In this case as The Nog says she will be dealt with as Juvenile i.e. Caution

LFC5Times

Silly thing for your gf to do in fairness, however that particular Garda was on a powertrip it seems!!! They should of just given her a stern talking to and let it be. No need for the summons or "my country" shyte.

TheNog is a guard so he will no doubt disagree as the guards can do no wrong in his eyes.

Jicked

TheNog wrote: »

+1 it was a retarded thing to do

Imagine there being consequences for embarassing someone in public. Why is that people seem to think its ok to pretend to hit a Garda or to make rude gestures behind their back. I bet you or your girlfriend wouldnt have done to a group of hoodies or rough looking bikers.

As she is 17 yrs old she will not be prosecuted in court. She will be dealt with vua Juvenile Liason Scheme which will be a caution only.

I think the OP accepts that there would be consequences - the dressing down the girl understandably took from the garda. Criminal consequences for a rather "embarrassment" (and rather mild embarassment at that coming from a non-threatening way, I presume, and from a minor) is clearly what the OP is worried about and is of course over the top.

badboyblast

Nothing will come of that, the guards have a lot more to deal with than someone having a laugh......that guard sounds like a right B%%%%, forgot about it move on....don`t worry about it until some happens, she was only trying to **** you up.

Shield

Depending on how you/she looks at this, we could be talking about an attempted assault on a member of An Garda Síochána.

If I was the American girl in question, I'd be down to the station tomorrow to apologise profusely for her actions to the Garda in question. It might just be the difference between the Garda letting it slide or taking it all the way.

Strepsils

Jicked wrote: »

I think the OP accepts that there would be consequences - the dressing down the girl understandably took from the garda. Criminal consequences for a rather "embarrassment" (and rather mild embarassment at that coming from a non-threatening way, I presume, and from a minor) is clearly what the OP is worried about and is of course over the top.

Exactly. I've heard and witnessed far worse incidents and for the gaurds to either give a dressing down there and then and/or just to be told to move on.

Fair enough, it was Paddy's day, they had been dealing with crap all day from everyone, it was a really stupid thing to do BUT, what harm did it cause at the end of the day to anyone? There was nobody around at all, the only people that witnessed the incident was myself, GF & the 2 gardai.. Possibly the odd person passing by. It was literally like a ghost town at this time & at this end of the street. Like i really do understand its a childish & disrespectful thing to do to anyone and if there was a group of people even witnessing any embarassment etc suffered by the gardai but there was'nt. The fact too that we were a good couple feet away and she barley raised her leg and that it was knower near the guard...

I just think its all very harsh on her. Considering the fact that further down the street, in clear sight there we're drunks/junkies arguing, drinking and even pissing up against walls and they done nothing about them.

Anyway, whats done is done. She done something idiotic & got stung for it and its equally my fault for even saying it. Just needed to know the general procedure thats usualy taken.

psni wrote: »

Depending on how you/she looks at this, we could be talking about an attempted assault on a member of An Garda Síochána.

If I was the American girl in question, I'd be down to the station tomorrow to apologise profusely for her actions to the Garda in question. It might just be the difference between the Garda letting it slide or taking it all the way.

She tried to apologise & explain there and then but like i said she was'nt having any of it.

It does however sound like a good idea to go down & try to apologise. Only thing is, we dont know the names or badge numbers of either of the garda. Is there any way to find out? Also which garda station would they likely be from since the incident took place on O'Connell/Parnell street?

Also is it possible to just call into the station and try find out what law/s she broke and find out the names of the garda?

Thanks for all the replys by the way, appreciate it.

pirelli

Strepsils wrote: »

Exactly. I've heard and witnessed far worse incidents and for the gaurds to either give a dressing down there and then and/or just to be told to move on.


I just think its all very harsh on her. Considering the fact that further down the street, in clear sight there we're drunks/junkies arguing, drinking and even pissing up against walls and they done nothing about them.

Anyway, whats done is done. She done something idiotic & got stung for it and its equally my fault for even saying it. Just needed to know the general procedure thats usualy taken.

Also which garda station would they likely be from since the incident took place on O'Connell/Parnell street?

Blame it on the junkies even on padddies day they were there. I doubt the junkies were pissing up against the wall. I would imagine paddies revelers were.

Without sounding cynical...em! Actually i cannot say what i wanted to say without sounding cynical but it's not my intent. Sure we all know every incident should be treated as impartially and fairly as possible... and with that in mind I just want to say that recently enough a grand jury found the shooting of an unarmed irish man by an american policeman was not criminally neglient.

In those circumstances that young irish man was also was a distance from the police and had no contact with them, but obviously it would be very biased to compare. He was shot at 7 times and 5 of those shots wounded him fatally.

I would like to know if the junkies the OP perceived were all male. It would bring me closer to my conclusion.

Strepsils

pirelli wrote: »

Blame it on the junkies even on padddies day they were there. I doubt the junkies were pissing up against the wall. I would imagine paddies revelers were.

Without sounding cynical...em! Actually i cannot say what i wanted to say without sounding cynical but it's not my intent. Sure we all know every incident should be treated as impartially and fairly as possible... and with that in mind I just want to say that recently enough a grand jury found the shooting of an unarmed irish man by an american policeman was not criminally neglient.

In those circumstances that young irish man was also was a distance from the police and had no contact with them, but obviously it would be very biased to compare. He was shot at 7 times and 5 of those shots wounded him fatally.

I would like to know if the junkies the OP perceived were all male. It would bring me closer to my conclusion.

I was'nt blamming it on anyone else at all, it was our fault totally. What i was trying to say though is they could have been dealing with far worse incidents over this one.

And to answer your question, they were mostly male but there were females also. Either way, they should have no reason not to confront them or atleast call for back up if they felt threatened in any way.

I seen the incident you mentioned on the news a couple month back btw, nothing short of tragic and it highlights exactly what is wrong with the systems around the world. But it does'nt compare, 2 completely different incidents, however i do see were your tryna come from.

jill_valentine

I can't imagine anything will come from it. Your GF clearly meant no harm, a prosecution wouldn't achieve anything. I mean, yeah, silly thing to do but an absurdly disproportionate response.

IrishManSaipan

Hi OP,

You and your girlfriend made an idiotic error. Even more idiotic was the timing of your error(9.30pm the Gardai would be just about the finish a long and difficult shift).

You have two choices here;

Hope for the best and the garda in question doesnt log the incident. You have a 50/50 chance with this.

Or, you could get your girlfriend to visit the garda station with one of her trusted lecturers and for her to apologise profusely.

If it does go to court, there maybe serious reprecussions. The garda could claim it was attempted assualt.

Put yourself in the gardas shoes for a moment. You are after working a long, hard and difficult Saint Patricks Day in Dublin city centre. You have taken dogs abuse for the past 7 1/2 hours. Your boyfriend and all your mates are out on the beve. Just before you finish some yank pretends to give you a root up the ass.

Would you log the incident?

Good luck to your girlfriend.

iii Stevo iii

IrishManSaipan wrote: »

You and your girlfriend made an idiotic error. Even more idiotic was the timing of your error(9.30pm the Gardai would be just about the finish a long and difficult shift).

Put yourself in the gardas shoes for a moment. You are after working a long, hard and difficult Saint Patricks Day in Dublin city centre. You have taken dogs abuse for the past 7 1/2 hours. Your boyfriend and all your mates are out on the beve. Just before you finish some yank pretends to give you a root up the ass.*

Would you log the incident?

The only thing i find idiotic is that some people on this thread feel that because the guard had a long hard day at work justifies her (in my opinion) rediculous over-reaction.

It's obvious the guard had taken her fill of abuse for the day and you got unlucky. Which is absured and unprofessional on the guards part, and that's not even mentioning her childish comments about your nationality etc.

The guard shouldn't be able to pick and choose when she feels like writing someone up.
If the guard was that strict all day on paddys day she'd have hundreds of write ups the next day, and you can be damn sure that didn't happen.

Piriz

hi OP,
Firstly i can not believe some of the responses you have received on this matter, to be called idiotic is a bit over the top and to suggest the Guard reacted accordingly is a joke.
People get away with lots worse in this city, the guard in question is a total wagon and will not be able to build a case against you...your story and actions on the day were totally innocent your entitled to have a laugh and not be accused of anything otherwise, a judge would view this as waisting the courts time and the guard would be told off...
Attempted assault my arse, are people for real suggesting this? if this was the case she would have been arrested on the spot...
Cant believe the actions of this guard total c*nt, and borderline racist...
If this did go to court i'd defend it all the way...
The Guards have no right to involve the college either, this has nothing to do with the college...
Dont worry any further on this NOTHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN!
If you go to the station its your gf that deserves the apology.

Kepti

Paddy's day or not, I expect more from a member of the Gardai. Vindictiveness, irritability and unreasonableness are not qualities I want to see in someone who is expected to uphold the law.

Best of luck Strepsils, hope it all blows over.

IsThisIt???

iii Stevo iii wrote: »

The only thing i find idiotic is that some people on this thread feel that because the guard had a long hard day at work justifies her (in my opinion) rediculous over-reaction.

It's obvious the guard had taken her fill of abuse for the day and you got unlucky. Which is absured and unprofessional on the guards part, and that's not even mentioning her childish comments about your nationality etc.

The guard shouldn't be able to pick and choose when she feels like writing someone up.
If the guard was that strict all day on paddys day she'd have hundreds of write ups the next day, and you can be damn sure that didn't happen.

+1.

Feel bad for the op's girlfriend, case of bad luck that could realistically happen to anyone with a rush of blood to the head. If you put it down to the guard being in a bad mood there is surely no way she could stay in a bad mood long enough to take it to the courts! And don't get me started on that "My country" s***e

TheNog

Strepsils wrote: »

It does however sound like a good idea to go down & try to apologise. Only thing is, we dont know the names or badge numbers of either of the garda. Is there any way to find out? Also which garda station would they likely be from since the incident took place on O'Connell/Parnell street?

Also is it possible to just call into the station and try find out what law/s she broke and find out the names of the garda?

Thanks for all the replys by the way, appreciate it.

Seeing as it happened on O Connell St/Parnell St I reckon the Gardai are from Store Street station. You could pop down and ask for the names of the Gardai working on that date and that time. You may be given a few names cos I think there is 30-40 Gardai on each unit.

TheNog

LFC5Times wrote: »

TheNog is a guard so he will no doubt disagree as the guards can do no wrong in his eyes.

If you are trying to out me across boards you can stop wasting your time. Many posters know what I do cos I have been a regular poster here for a couple of years as well as being a former Mod of the ES forum.

Also I never said guards can do no wrong.

LFC5Times

TheNog wrote: »

If you are trying to out me across boards you can stop wasting your time. Many posters know what I do cos I have been a regular poster here for a couple of years as well as being a former Mod of the ES forum.

Also I never said guards can do no wrong.

I was not trying to out you, just merely expressing an opinion.

MagicSean

iii Stevo iii wrote: »

The only thing i find idiotic is that some people on this thread feel that because the guard had a long hard day at work justifies her (in my opinion) rediculous over-reaction.

It's obvious the guard had taken her fill of abuse for the day and you got unlucky. Which is absured and unprofessional on the guards part, and that's not even mentioning her childish comments about your nationality etc.

The guard shouldn't be able to pick and choose when she feels like writing someone up.
If the guard was that strict all day on paddys day she'd have hundreds of write ups the next day, and you can be damn sure that didn't happen.

Actually a garda has the right to decide wether to write someone up or not just like the d.p.p. has the option wether to prosecute someone or not. I would think gardaí are much less likely to let someone off when the offence includes any sort of intrusion or attempted intrusion on their person though. I don't think it was anything to do with having her fill of abuse. There are somethings you have to go hard on. If she left someone off for pretending to kick her you can be sure that some drunk idiot will see this and try the real thing. I'm sure any garda will tell you this.

In this case the strong telling off the ops girlfriend got obviously had the intended affect. Doesnt look like she'll be doing it again. I wouldnt worry about any court appearence though. Your gf is a juvenile and legally entitled to be entered in the juvenile diversion program. If you do want to apologise to the garda it wouldnt be a bad idea. Call to Store Street and see if they can tell you who was patrolling that street on Paddys night. It might be hard to track down the garda though because there are a lot of them working on paddys day but it can't hurt to try.

Just out of curiosity, does your gf not need a legal guardian while in this country?

old_aussie

So what law did she break?

MagicSean

Piriz wrote: »

hi OP,
Firstly i can not believe some of the responses you have received on this matter, to be called idiotic is a bit over the top and to suggest the Guard reacted accordingly is a joke.
People get away with lots worse in this city, the guard in question is a total wagon and will not be able to build a case against you...your story and actions on the day were totally innocent your entitled to have a laugh and not be accused of anything otherwise, a judge would view this as waisting the courts time and the guard would be told off...
Attempted assault my arse, are people for real suggesting this? if this was the case she would have been arrested on the spot...
Cant believe the actions of this guard total c*nt, and borderline racist...
If this did go to court i'd defend it all the way...
The Guards have no right to involve the college either, this has nothing to do with the college...
Dont worry any further on this NOTHING IS GOING TO HAPPEN!
If you go to the station its your gf that deserves the apology.

This incident is an example of an offence under Section 5 of the Public Order Act. All the Garda needs to build a case is what she and her partner saw.

And someone is entitled to a laugh of course. But not at the expense of someone else and despite what you might think Gardaí are people too. If you were walking in town and paddys night and you turned around to see someone about to kick you what would your reaction be?

deanswift

tenchi-fan wrote: »

from your comments it seems you don't realise how serious it is!

She definitely wouldn't have done it to a US cop, and an Irish girl would probably end up in guantanamo bay if she did it to an American cop.

is the summons written in stone yet? Is there any possibility she could apologise to the guards properly, maybe get some one she trusts in the college to meet the guards with her and give her a character reference.

agreed imagine pretending to kick a NY cop!!!!!!!!!!!!!
or a london bobby!!!!!!!!!!!!
just wouldn't do it

Kepti

k_mac wrote: »

This incident is an example of an offence under Section 5 of the Public Order Act. All the Garda needs to build a case is what she and her partner saw.

And someone is entitled to a laugh of course. But not at the expense of someone else and despite what you might think Gardaí are people too. If you were walking in town and paddys night and you turned around to see someone about to kick you what would your reaction be?

That's not a fair comparison at all. You don't think the Gardai should be held to higher standards than the rest of us due to the power the wield? The "she's only human" bit is a cop out excuse. We're all only human, and we're all mostly not cut out to be good Guards. Sounds like she isn't either.

MagicSean

Kepti wrote: »

That's not a fair comparison at all. You don't think the Gardai should be held to higher standards than the rest of us due to the power the wield? The "she's only human" bit is a cop out excuse. We're all only human, and we're all mostly not cut out to be good Guards. Sounds like she isn't either.

I bet you'd also complain if you got a ticket for breaking a red light and the garda wouldnt listen to your excuse. I think it's good to have gardaí that show they are human.

Tom Young

Warning: I am watching the tone of posts here. I will act if things get too personal or emotive.

Kepti

k_mac wrote: »

I bet you'd also complain if you got a ticket for breaking a red light and the garda wouldnt listen to your excuse. I think it's good to have gardaí that show they are human.

If you usually bet so poorly, please, for your own sake, stay away from the bookies.

That said, I probably would complain if I ran a red light and was then dragged out of my car and beaten to a pulp in a ridiculous overreaction by a loose cannon.

I like the Gardai to show they're human too, except by you know, showing compassion, understanding and patience.

MagicSean

Kepti wrote: »

If you usually bet so poorly, please, for your own sake, stay away from the bookies.

That said, I probably would complain if I ran a red light and was then dragged out of my car and beaten to a pulp in a ridiculous overreaction by a loose cannon.

I like the Gardai to show they're human too, except by you know, showing compassion, understanding and patience.

Cant have it both ways. You cant be half human.

Your example is a bit extreme dont you think. The op didnt say anything about getting beaten to a pulp. She said she got a telling off from an angry garda.

And for your information I did quite well in the bookies last week.

Kepti

k_mac wrote: »

Cant have it both ways. You cant be half human.

Your example is a bit extreme dont you think. The op didnt say anything about getting beaten to a pulp. She said she got a telling off from an angry garda.

And for your information I did quite well in the bookies last week.

I'm not tying to have it both ways. You don't need to be half human to keep your emotions in check. If it was just an isolated incident where she reached a breaking point and lost control, it's ugly, but not a huge deal. I don't think it's acceptable if it's just part of a larger pattern though.

I thought it was pretty clear that I wasn't drawing a comparison between the reaction of the Gardai in the op and your hypothetical Gardi who caught me running a red light. You seemed to be confused about what exactly I took issue with, which was the overreaction, not the idea of someone being punished for wrongdoing.

Congratulations on your winnings.

MagicSean

Kepti wrote: »

I'm not tying to have it both ways. You don't need to be half human to keep your emotions in check. If it was just an isolated incident where she reached a breaking point and lost control, it's ugly, but not a huge deal. I don't think it's acceptable if it's just part of a larger pattern though.

I thought it was pretty clear that I wasn't drawing a comparison between the reaction of the Gardai in the op and your hypothetical Gardi who caught me running a red light. You seemed to be confused about what exactly I took issue with, which was the overreaction, not the idea of someone being punished for wrongdoing.

Congratulations on your winnings.

There are scales of over-reaction though and I would submit that the scale of the over-reaction in the hypothetical red light scenario is far greater than the scale of the perceived over-reaction in the ops case. Personally I dont think the Garda over-reacted at all. I think an over-reaction would have involved arresting the ops girlfriend. I suppose we will have to agree to disagree on this point.

Viper_JB

I wouldn't even offer an apology in this case, the guard in question was way out of line, if the guard wants to take your gf to court let her and let her get a tongue lashing off of the judge for wasting time and money on nothing. If you can't deal rationally and with this behavour on paddys day then you shouldn't be a guarda simple as.

MagicSean

Viper_JB wrote: »

I wouldn't even offer an apology in this case, the guard in question was way out of line, boardering on racist here, if the guard wants to take your gf to court let her and let her get a tongue lashing off of the judge for wasting time and money on nothing. If you can't deal rationally and with this behavour on paddys day then you shouldn't be a guarda simple as.

Why should Paddys day be any different to a normal day?

Mr. Presentable

Viper_JB wrote: »

I wouldn't even offer an apology in this case, the guard in question was way out of line, boardering on racist here, if the guard wants to take your gf to court let her and let her get a tongue lashing off of the judge for wasting time and money on nothing. If you can't deal rationally and with this behavour on paddys day then you shouldn't be a guarda simple as.

You know what? You are way out of line on this.

In the OP the Garda turns to find someone aiming a kick at her.

The only ones who know it's not for real are the couple in the OP. The correct action would be for the girl to apologise and hope it ends there.

Viper_JB

There maybe other factors at play here but to quote the op here...

Anyway, joking i said "You could always kick one of the garda in the arse to livin it up", at this point the gaurds were approx 6/7ft in front of us when she jokingly mimicked kicking one by raising her foot.

Now raising your foot 6/7 foot away from someone hardly merits that kind of response, and that kind of response hardly merits an apology unless you believe the guardi are there to scare the bejesus out of people so they keep in line, to me it just seems like a pretty poor representation of the guards.

Kepti

k_mac wrote: »

There are scales of over-reaction though and I would submit that the scale of the over-reaction in the hypothetical red light scenario is far greater than the scale of the perceived over-reaction in the ops case.

Yes, of course. Again, I wasn't equating the two overreactions. My example being extreme was due to me being naturally a little hyperbolic.

Personally I dont think the Garda over-reacted at all. I think an over-reaction would have involved arresting the ops girlfriend. I suppose we will have to agree to disagree on this point.

Agreed.

Shield

Viper_JB wrote: »

the guard in question was way out of line, boardering on racist here

Was the American in question a difference race to the Garda in question? I didn't see race being mentioned anywhere, so on what basis do you make that comment?

Viper_JB

psni wrote: »

Was the American in question a difference race to the Garda in question? I didn't see race being mentioned anywhere, so on what basis do you make that comment?

Fair enough comment withdrawn.

Dazzler88

what an uptight guard.Did you not tell her it was Paddys day and to lighten up?I'd say nothing will come of it.Thats what happens when authority goes to peoples heads.Dont let it ruin your girlfriends perception of the country,as the saying goes 'There is always one.'

Piriz

k_mac wrote: »

This incident is an example of an offence under Section 5 of the Public Order Act. All the Garda needs to build a case is what she and her partner saw.

And someone is entitled to a laugh of course. But not at the expense of someone else and despite what you might think Gardaí are people too. If you were walking in town and paddys night and you turned around to see someone about to kick you what would your reaction be?

Well i would quickly assess the persons playful demeanor & the fact it was a boyfriend and girlfriend and it was all in jest this would lead me to conclude that there was zero threat to anyone and any reaction other than acknowledging that they are having harmless fun would be totally disproportionate (especially as the pair could explain the situation, however this was not even listened to...crazy b*tch of a Guard).
However you believe otherwise.....its actually scary that even if this was just a case study that people defend the actions of the Guard, i wonder if this was a case study presented without telling the actions of the Guard but asking what action would you take? what the response would be...would they be identical to the original story? i doubt it IMO.
It seems that Guards will back up other Guards actions now matter how unjust they are... evidence of this in this thread...
People who have defended the Guards actions in this case have showed little objectivity, logic & rational, people skills, observational skills, the list continues...for shame...

psni wrote: »

Was the American in question a difference race to the Garda in question? I didn't see race being mentioned anywhere, so on what basis do you make that comment?

PSNI, 'Racial discrimination typically points out taxonomic differences between different groups of people'. Agree? The Guard making statements about the GF being from another country etc. is borderline racism.
PSNI if you are a member of the Police force you should have grasped this!

Its been an interesting discussion none the less..

MagicSean

Piriz wrote: »

Well i would quickly assess the persons playful demeanor & the fact it was a boyfriend and girlfriend and it was all in jest this would lead me to conclude that there was zero threat to anyone and any reaction other than acknowledging that they are having harmless fun would be totally disproportionate

People who have defended the Guards actions in this case have showed little objectivity, logic & rational, people skills, observational skills, the list continues...for shame...

You should become a Garda and show them all how its done. And when you end up in hospital for trying to talk nice to someone who attacks you might change your tune.

Jicked

k_mac wrote: »

And someone is entitled to a laugh of course. But not at the expense of someone else and despite what you might think Gardaí are people too. If you were walking in town and paddys night and you turned around to see someone about to kick you what would your reaction be?

If it was a child, as in the case here, and was done in a jokey manner, as in the case here (I highly doubt the Garda feared for their personal safety from several feet away from a child playfully kicking the air) I'd probably just ignore it. As it was a Garda I can understand them giving out to her, they're in a position of authority and no-one would argue that she didn't deserve a quick reprimand. To have a sustained and vitriolic go at her is ludicrous. To press charges against her even more so.

Earlier in the thread TheNog wondered would the girl have had the guts to do it to a hooligan or biker gang (apparently TheNog's beat regularly takes him on to the mean-streets of a 1950s James Dean movie). Could you not reverse the question; would a ban Garda have gone to such excess if a group of scumbags someone had shouted something derogatory from afar about the police in the wilds of a dodgy Limerick estate?

Jicked

k_mac wrote: »

You should become a Garda and show them all how its done. And when you end up in hospital for trying to talk nice to someone who attacks you might change your tune.

Piriz writes soberly, sensibly, politely and with some objectivity. And your response is that ridiculous, sensationalist guff? What's the next argument going to be - if you don't like it why don't we disband the entire police force and leave you lot to anarchy.

mardybumbum

I really hope your GF hasn't apologised.
Guard sounds like a xenophobe.

TheNog

Jicked wrote: »

Earlier in the thread TheNog wondered would the girl have had the guts to do it to a hooligan or biker gang (apparently TheNog's beat regularly takes him on to the mean-streets of a 1950s James Dean movie). Could you not reverse the question; would a ban Garda have gone to such excess if a group of scumbags someone had shouted something derogatory from afar about the police in the wilds of a dodgy Limerick estate?

I wonder why so many posters think its alright to show disrespect to another in public. I dont doubt the OP and his g/f didnt mean to but thats whats essentially happened. Thats why I made the comparision to bikers etc because some people seem to think they can do what they like to our Police force without any consequences but when there may be consequences they worry/moan. This is what is wrong with our society, disregard respect for a cheap laugh.

PatsyStone

Let me get this right. Your GF was 6/7 feet away and she raised her foot mimicking kicking the guard in the arse? OK, not the cleverest thing to do in the world and not very respectful but the reaction was definitely a bit OTT and very unfair on your GF. I think a simple apology is enough and the guard went much too far.

Kepti

TheNog wrote: »

I wonder why so many posters think its alright to show disrespect to another in public.

Nobody said that. You conjured that argument out of thin air.

Jicked

TheNog wrote: »

I wonder why so many posters think its alright to show disrespect to another in public. I dont doubt the OP and his g/f didnt mean to but thats whats essentially happened. Thats why I made the comparision to bikers etc because some people seem to think they can do what they like to our Police force without any consequences but when there may be consequences they worry/moan. This is what is wrong with our society, disregard respect for a cheap laugh.

If you read my post you'll see that I never said anything of the sort. I said the Garda would have been perfectly right to give out to the kid who made the joke, you're putting words in my mouth. Clearly the Garda acted way over the top, we don't need to do any deep soul seaching about where we're going as a society to try to justify it.

Shield

Piriz wrote: »

PSNI, 'Racial discrimination typically points out taxonomic differences between different groups of people'. Agree?

Actually no, I don't agree with the definition you have merely copied and pasted from Wikipedia, especially when the person who made the comment withdrew it after me asking a simple question.

While you were on Wikipedia, did you see the bit under Definitions where it says "the term can also have varying and contested definitions"?

Maybe you should have read his post in context, and his subsequent withdrawal before you went running to Wikipedia to try and make it look like I don't "grasp" the term... and then attempt to associate this with my ability to do my job. Poor attempt at a cheap shot. Bravo.

MagicSean

Jicked wrote: »

If you read my post you'll see that I never said anything of the sort. I said the Garda would have been perfectly right to give out to the kid who made the joke, you're putting words in my mouth. Clearly the Garda acted way over the top, we don't need to do any deep soul seaching about where we're going as a society to try to justify it.

But all the Garda did was give out to her so how is her behaviour over the top?