Garda - Not all above the law....

BronsonTB

Good to see not all Garda are above the law

Was a serving garda - Any sentence should have been doubled as a factor!

Good to see a prosecution, shame it wasn't alot longer.

His kids tried to protect thier mother with toys, heartbreaking, scumbag & drink/drugs should never be tolerated as an excuse.

https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/1018/1254470-garda-attack-sentence/

ohnonotgmail

It says he subsequently left An Garda Siochana. Surely he was fired?

murpho999

No Garda is above the law, why do you think some are?

source

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040326#Comment_118040326

More than likely quit before he could be fired. AGS is not like a normal employer, it's more akin to the military in its structure. Before they could fire him they would need to conduct an investigation and he would need to be found to be in breach of the Garda Siochana Act before they could fire him. He most likely knew that he was done and jumped ship before this could happen.

BronsonTB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040377#Comment_118040377

Because most do think they are - Getitng a presecutrion against a grada is alot lot harder than any member of the public, They know this too so when the bad ones are caught & brought to court it's good to see this - Reinstills there is some justice some of the time here..

I'm not against the Garda in general just resent every rotten apple that they do have (esp the ones that get away with wrong doing).

ahappychappy

It seems like a very light sentence for what reads as attempted murder with his kids as witnesses! That poor woman what her mind must have been going through with the kids present. Surely he should have got double due to being "a pillar of the community" or whatever cr*p will be spouted about him.

ohnonotgmail

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040377#Comment_118040377

because it seems, according to victim, that he was not treated in the same way as a normal joe

The victim’s impact statement outlined the profound effect his domestic violence had on her and her children. She also believed he had been dealt with differently because he was a garda.

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058213767/garda-not-all-above-the-law

so gardai should be treated differently to citizens, particularly if they break the law?

steddyeddy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040377#Comment_118040377

Because Ireland has a history of letting of highly corrupt members of its police force with a slap on the wrist. Those of us of a certain age remember Garda from Donegal trying to ruin a man's life by framing him for murder. They resigned on full pensions.

Gardai paid to have McBrearty framed, Morris hears

The Morris tribunal has heard allegations from a Garda informer from Sligo that he was paid by Donegal gardaí to make false statements and "set up" members of the extended McBrearty family.

He said he had been paid to claim Mr Mark McConnell and Mr Michael Peoples had called to his house and threatened him for being an informer, handing him a silver bullet. Mr McConell is a first cousin of Mr Frank McBrearty jnr, and Mr Peoples is related by marriage.

Mr Conlon, from Sligo, claimed Det Sgt White had pointed the two men out to him at a court sitting in Letterkenny in 1997 and asked him to "do him a turn" and "set them up". He said Det Sgt White told him the two men were the main suspects for the murder of Richie Barron.

Mr Conlon subsequently admitted to the Carty Inquiry that his allegations concerning the silver bullet were lies.

Mr Conlon also claimed he was given money to make official complaints against Mr Frank McBrearty snr's nightclub in Raphoe, Frankie's. He said he was told to drink after hours in the club in August 1997 and allow his name to be taken by gardaí who raided the bar. He was then to testify in court that he had been there.

B.A._Baracus

You have to laugh that he was "off his face" on coke while being an active Garda at the time. Like, life is just a game isn't it.

He's not the only guard who likes to sniff coke or smoke hash. I would say a good portion of the younger guards like to 'party' :p But it's funny as these are the same people who are meant to seize drugs and bring them back to the station. Let's be realistic here, said Garda in question probably stopped someone, seized his coke while saying to himself: that's me sorted for Saturday. lol.

It's all a game.

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040494#Comment_118040494

yea drug addiction is just a bit of craic really!

B.A._Baracus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040430#Comment_118040430

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040503#Comment_118040503

I know you have your big stick out prodding and looking for a good ol' classic internet forum argument. You tried it with the op, now moving on to someone else. The mistake you made is that you thought people wouldn't notice.

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040515#Comment_118040515

hahaha, the internets really is fcuking weird at times, you re funny!

JimmyVik

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040494#Comment_118040494

I remember buying fireworks off the local garda a few times at halloween :)

B.A._Baracus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040529#Comment_118040529

Ok.

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040549#Comment_118040549

...any chance of his number

B.A._Baracus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040549#Comment_118040549

Gas! lol.

I remember playing poker in a pub 10 years ago. One of the guys looking at his phone, moaning and saying any phone you get off that guard never works. I thought it was a joke at first however then asked him and the table. It turns out Garda in question is known for selling stolen phones he seizes.

As I say all one big game.

Jequ0n

“He also suffered from acute anxiety, depression and adjustment disorder.”

now this made me laugh

Green Peter

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040405#Comment_118040405

You must be joking, they have everything thrown at them as management don't want to be accused of not going after them. In fact in alot of cases they are prosecuted where civilians would never be and that's why some of the cases fail when they get to court and they get to defend themselves.

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040430#Comment_118040430

"Judge Hughes said the fact that the defendant was a member of An Garda Síochána at the time was an aggravating factor."

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040636#Comment_118040636

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/courts/supreme-court/garda-commissioner-loses-appeal-over-dismissal-of-sergeant-1.2868930

Garda convicted of assault gets to keep her job. So we have a convict as a Garda sergent.

nj27

If a Gard is taking cocaine he should be clapped in irons and locked up in preeson prezon prizon prison.

zell12

2010 Three gardai fired from the force in just one month

gmisk

https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/crime/former-garda-held-over-alleged-links-to-the-hutch-mob-40911707.html

A great bunch of lads and ladies

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040615#Comment_118040615

you know yourself, if he has a class a addiction, its very likely hes has some sort of psychological issues, as described....

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040639#Comment_118040639

yes, because some involved in the legal system also have this mentality, funnily enough gardai are also humans, and we re all prone to fcuking up....

Oranage2

An Gardai Siochana with their reduced perks have attracted a lot of the wrong crowd recently. The no skills is perfect for a brainless yobs that are happy to just say yes to their Sargent

coolbeans

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040449#Comment_118040449

Totally agree. Drew Harris is the best thing that ever happened to AGS. He'll be forced out eventually but here's hoping he roots out some of the endemic corruption in this organisation. Remember Callinan calling McCabe disgusting? All the other scandals. It baffles me how they still seem to enjoy public confidence. And yes, I think Gardaí who break the law should be held to a higher standard. Why this is a controversial opinion mystifies me.

Kat1170

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040556#Comment_118040556

999

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040822#Comment_118040822

assume the extension numbers are 999# or 999c?

Kat1170

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040835#Comment_118040835

Never assume 😉

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040765#Comment_118040765

He chocked his partner and threatened to kill her in front of the kids. It isn't "fcuking up" as you call it and we don't all do something like that from time to time. I would imagine the fact that he was a Garda made her even more afraid.

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040851#Comment_118040851

yes, we have a legal system to deal with this, but his psychological issues need to be dealt with, within the system, but they probably wont be, which increases the potential for him to offend again, possible even worse

Green Peter

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040665#Comment_118040665

When you have to go to the supreme court it proves my point

Donald Trump

I seem to recall some case years ago of a Guard getting convicted of something and his solicitor or barrister appealing to the court that the custodial sentence would be unfair on a Guard as they'd be put in with criminals they helped convict which meant prison was far worse for a Guard. And then the judge agreed and he didn't have to serve his time. Something like that. Could be misremembering though

spaceHopper

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040383#Comment_118040383

If he was addicted to coke then where was he buying it and was he open to blackmail or even blackmailed before

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040891#Comment_118040891

Right, well maybe you are happy with a convicted criminal as a serving Garda, but I would not be. I think the Gardai in general have a lot of work to do to regain trust. The whistleblower Maurice McCabe was smeared as a pedophile. They are a law into themselves sometimes.

cj maxx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040811#Comment_118040811

I have to say I had sincere doubts about his appointment, given his psni background, but the closed shop that was/is senior Gardai ranks has been shown to be every bit as liable to corruption as any other government branch. Disheartening to say the least.

Green Peter

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118041052#Comment_118041052

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040851#Comment_118040851

Senior Management are at the behest of government. Government had no interest in Maurice McCabe until he became a problem for them. He became a problem when senior Management couldn't make him go away. Most gardai wouldn't dream of whistleblowing now after they seen what the collective of Garda management and government did to him. Unfortunately it's Joe Public who now suffer because rank and file gardai won't speak up about lack of resources or bad practice. If it reflects badly on management you are a problem for management and then government who are responsible for management. It's easier to be a yes man or woman and have some chance of a career. Appointments to superintendent are cabinet approved. You don't get there by raising valid issues, you get there by keeping a lid on them. Meanwhile the rank and file get hammered by the media at every opportunity. No wonder so many are leaving and retiring at the first opportunity.

Jequ0n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040765#Comment_118040765

Yeah, coke for anxiety issues sounds like a great idea. And whatever is an adjustment disorder

Wanderer78

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118041134#Comment_118041134

tis to the addicted mind

Jequ0n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118041138#Comment_118041138

The Power Ranger swords will have beaten sense into him

Mad_maxx

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040811#Comment_118040811

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118040811#Comment_118040811

We have always held our police force to an extremely low standard of ethics .

Most people have positive views towards them because not doing so is seen as lacking in respectability and that's something Irish people just won't do.

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118041131#Comment_118041131

I guess we wouldn't need whistleblowers if they weren't quashing penalty points and claiming for overtime they didn't do. I presume that was mostly the rank and file? What makes you think government would not want that to come out?

Green Peter

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118041726#Comment_118041726

Tell me about your perfect profession and how you achieve 100% perfection. I presume there are over 14,000 working in it. I bet you won't!

Gaspode

Absolutely shocking that that animal only got 3 months for attempted murder. Should be done for child abuse as well behaving like that in front of his kids.

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118041791#Comment_118041791

Very little is expected of the Gardai, I would say #1 would be actually obeying the law themselves. I am not aware of any other situation where a whistle blower is smeared as a pedophile.

Jequ0n

@Gaspode If his attack had fulfilled the criteria for attempted murder he is would have been tried for it.

The kids will most likely be fine, not everything is as traumatising as people believe it to be.

Green Peter

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118041856#Comment_118041856

I was right! You didn't. Ball burst off with ya

Yurt2

I think there is a massive generational divide on this. People of the generation born in the 50/60s and before from middle Ireland had a huge deference towards the Gardai, and the force was a monoculture with members drawn from that precise class of people. We weren't a very transparent state until the mid-90s when big social changes started happening (there was huge institutional resistance to Freedom of Information legislation for instance, a lot of our civil servants had attitudes that wouldn't have been out of place in Franco's Spain). AGS were and are one of the last to get on board with transparency because of the notion they are the thin blue line between order and chaos that lots of older middle Ireland residually hold firm to.

I had my reservations about Harris (particularly his links to the shadier side of the British security and intelligence apparatus), but he appears to have been relatively accountable thus far and doesn't have much time for sacred cows.

HerrKuehn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118042848#Comment_118042848

Of course no other profession is "perfect". The fact is the Gardai have such a credibility issue that we need to get a commissioner in from Northern Ireland of all places to oversee them!

Green Peter

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118042914#Comment_118042914

Diversity is good for every organisation. The vast majority of gardai would have welcomed an outside appointment for the reasons I stated earlier that all senior promotions are government appointed already and by and large yes people. It was a forced gamble for the government, I think he's done well and changes coming to the promotion system among others show that members complaints down through the years are being heard. The inspectorate reports that were shelved years ago told them the same thing based on feedback from rank and file. Anyway that's not the story the media or disgruntled public want to know about as it doesn't suit the narrative.