House break in

displaced dub

Hi

My home office was broken into at the weekend and our local part time station was closed. I called first thing Monday to report it.

Needed a letter which they gave me for insurances purposes, then the Garda called today to ask me to come in and give a statement, do you need to give a statement for a break in?

Reloc8

You don't need to do anything if you don't want to.

However, the gardai will want to investigate the crime and try to catch those responsible, now that it has been reported.

Your insurer will likely take a view on the claim based on whether you co-operate or not.

Why would you not make a statement ?

MagicSean

displaced dub wrote: »

Hi

My home office was broken into at the weekend and our local part time station was closed. I called first thing Monday to report it.

Needed a letter which they gave me for insurances purposes, then the Garda called today to ask me to come in and give a statement, do you need to give a statement for a break in?

If you don't give one there is no evidence your house was entered without your permission. The insurance company may not pay out if you do not cooperate with the Garda investigation.

FreudianSlippers

I have to agree with the above and ask why one wouldn't want to give a statement in such a situation?

displaced dub

im quite happy to give a statement, just cant understand why they didn't ask for it earlier also i thought it was the perpetrator who had to give statements not the victim.

mathepac

Someone reporting a crime needs to make a statement, i.e. their official signed account of what happened; someone accused of a crime is not obliged to say / write / sign anything.

Reloc8

displaced dub wrote: »

im quite happy to give a statement, just cant understand why they didn't ask for it earlier also i thought it was the perpetrator who had to give statements not the victim.

No that's backwards.

The alleged victim in a case like this (burglary is taken extremely seriously) has to provide the details of what happened to them, in a form which can be used in future court proceedings (cautioned).

The alleged perpetrator might choose to make a statement, or provide answers in an interview with police but cannot be forced to do so.

The gardai likely didn't ask you for a statement there and then as they were in the first instance assisting you with the paperwork you needed to deal with your insurer as a priority, and perhaps not in a position to sit down with you for an hour there and then. They are now attending on you 24 hours later - hardly a significant lapse of time.

It is possible that they have identified a suspect or suspects and need the statement for the purposes of that investigation, or for some other reason the file has been reviewed and a statement from you is required.

MagicSean

displaced dub wrote: »

im quite happy to give a statement, just cant understand why they didn't ask for it earlier also i thought it was the perpetrator who had to give statements not the victim.

And if he says you gave him permission to enter and take stuff what is there to disprove that?

HarryPotter41

displaced dub wrote: »

im quite happy to give a statement, just cant understand why they didn't ask for it earlier also i thought it was the perpetrator who had to give statements not the victim.

Injured party must make a statement for an investigation to progress.

coylemj

HarryPotter41 wrote: »

Injured party must make a statement for an investigation to progress.

Not true, for most incidents of crime the Gardai do not need a statement. If they did they would spend most of the day in the station writing out statements for victims of crime.

When you walk down O'Connell St. or Grafton St. and see a Garda taking a report of a picked pocket or snatched handbag from a tourist, you do not see them bringing those people to Store St. or Pearse St. to make a statement and neither are they asked to turn up later to make a statement.

If someone is arrested and charged and the case is likely to go to the Circuit Court where a Book of Evidence will be required then they must get a written statement because that would have to be in the book of evidence. In most other cases the verbal account of the crime is all that the Gardai need and if they don't have a suspect it serves no purpose that I can see to take a written statement for something as straightforward as a break-in/burglary.

There is one situation where the Gardai almost always get a statement and that is where the parties are known to one another and are liable to change their account of events between the time they make the complaint to the Gardai and the date of the court hearing. This typically happens with domestic disputes involving violence or disputes between neighbours where someone could change his mind, go to court and give a completely different account of the events leaving the individual Garda open to accusations of harassment or vexatious prosecution. In this type of case the Garda typically covers his or her arse and takes a statement.

HarryPotter41

coylemj wrote: »

Not true, for most incidents of crime the Gardai do not need a statement. If they did they would spend most of the day in the station writing out statements for victims of crime.

When you walk down O'Connell St. or Grafton St. and see a Garda taking a report of a picked pocket or snatched handbag from a tourist, you do not see them bringing those people to Store St. or Pearse St. to make a statement and neither are they asked to turn up later to make a statement.

If someone is arrested and charged and the case is likely to go to the Circuit Court where a Book of Evidence will be required then they must get a written statement because that would have to be in the book of evidence. In most other cases the verbal account of the crime is all that the Gardai need and if they don't have a suspect it serves no purpose that I can see to take a written statement for something as straightforward as a break-in/burglary.

There is one situation where the Gardai almost always get a statement and that is where the parties are known to one another and are liable to change their account of events between the time they make the complaint to the Gardai and the date of the court hearing. This typically happens with domestic disputes involving violence or disputes between neighbours where someone could change his mind, go to court and give a completely different account of the events leaving the individual Garda open to accusations of harassment or vexatious prosecution. In this type of case the Garda typically covers his or her arse and takes a statement.

They take i/p statements in the case of break ins and burglaries, otherwise would be very difficult to prepare files for the D/O, this is done regardless of a suspect or not, they need a report of what exactly happened, in most cases it is taken when the Garda visits the scene of the burglary.

Reloc8

coylemj wrote: »

Not true, for most incidents of crime the Gardai do not need a statement. If they did they would spend most of the day in the station writing out statements for victims of crime.

When you walk down O'Connell St. or Grafton St. and see a Garda taking a report of a picked pocket or snatched handbag from a tourist, you do not see them bringing those people to Store St. or Pearse St. to make a statement and neither are they asked to turn up later to make a statement.

If someone is arrested and charged and the case is likely to go to the Circuit Court where a Book of Evidence will be required then they must get a written statement because that would have to be in the book of evidence. In most other cases the verbal account of the crime is all that the Gardai need and if they don't have a suspect it serves no purpose that I can see to take a written statement for something as straightforward as a break-in/burglary.

There is one situation where the Gardai almost always get a statement and that is where the parties are known to one another and are liable to change their account of events between the time they make the complaint to the Gardai and the date of the court hearing. This typically happens with domestic disputes involving violence or disputes between neighbours where someone could change his mind, go to court and give a completely different account of the events leaving the individual Garda open to accusations of harassment or vexatious prosecution. In this type of case the Garda typically covers his or her arse and takes a statement.

With all eh due respect that's just a complete load of nonsense. Victims of crime in the vast majority of cases are asked to make statements, not least so that the correct charge can be preferred but for lots of other reasons too. Statements are routinely taken and disclosed in district court cases aside from trial's on indictment. It is reasonable to say that a simple shop lifting case might not always generate statements, however often they do.

To say that the only situation where gardai 'almost always' get statements is where parties know each other would be quite frankly bollix. Any case where an indictable charge might be involved will usually generate statements, for the simple reason that the gardai dealing with it don't know whether it will go to the Circuit Court or not at the point of investigation (that's for the DPP, and sometimes the District Judge and the Defendant). Even summary assaults generally result in the taking of statements whether parties are known to each other or not.

Clearly it would be complete pants to come back looking for statements say up to a year after an incident, once it becomes clear it might go to the Circuit. Hence statements are taken as quickly as is practicable, exceptions where good practice is not followed aside.

I don't know where you get your information (sorry opinion) from but its flawed. You say you can see no reason for statements in a simple burglary/break in - I suppose you are aware that a huge proportion of burglaries are sent forward to the Circuit Court ? Particularly those involving residential property ? i.e. in due course a book of evidence will be prepared.