Drew Harris and the continuing story of the bike

Patrick2010

Harris suggesting the full story hasn't come out, suggesting the guard concerned was guilty of something more than loaning a bike. They had 4 years to prove this but didn't.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41358064.html

Later, the Garda Representative Association issued a statement welcoming the fact its member has returned to full duties as of Thursday. 

"We believe the process has fully vindicated our member and endorsed the integrity of his actions and decision making," it said. "However, the Commissioner's comments today before the Public Accounts Committee has done little to diffuse the anger and disillusionment felt by both the member concerned and his family and colleagues within An Garda Síochána over the entire matter.

"On a day that should be about acknowledging the finding of no wrongdoing and restoring the dignity and reputation of this member, the Garda Commissioner has chosen to make comments that had the potential to cast a doubt over that reputation.

"We believe that instead of making comments which could be interpreted as questioning those findings, the Commissioner should have perhaps conceded that this entire investigation was in part mishandled, escalated and then drawn out beyond normal comprehension."

deirdremf

I'll be generous and say Harris left himself open to misinterpretation there. Is this the beginning of the end for him?

If that Garda doesn’t resign fair play to him.

Even after being exonerated the commissioner is telling the Dail he wasn’t really innocent at all basically.

Shambles

JPCN1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058342956/drew-harris-and-the-continuing-story-of-the-bike

Despicable from Harris but what you'd expect from the man.

mikethecop

Imagine your boss accusing you of stealing in these circumstances , being cleared repeatedly and very publicly and then still being slandered in public , by the supposed leader of the national polices service .

id find a good solicitor first of all id try to ensure he is removed so that he cant do that kind of damage to other innocent people and then go after millions and millions and then offending persons personal financial health.

i ve said this before here but this isn't a unique case of innocents people being suspended for years then cleared , its just the most public one

foxhunter2024

The government control the guards, what will the other Harris report be?

Odhinn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058342956/drew-harris-and-the-continuing-story-of-the-bike

The notion that - simply by being a Garda - somebody is automatically telling the truth really has to go.

ebbsy

Drew Harris. The man who sent his staff out into a riot without so much as a water cannon.

Please resign Mr.Silly Man.

mickdw

Harris is a disgrace.

The man was cleared after all that time and instead of just coming out and saying the man is innocent and we need to do better in terms of investigating these type of things in future, he basically said there is more to the story than you know.

Disgrace.

Odhinn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121928240#Comment_121928240

Essentially sabotaging that Gardas future without trial or any sort of due process. Almost as bad as Callinan briefing groundless stories about SgtMccabe.

appledrop

https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/garda-caught-up-in-controversy-over-unwanted-50-bike-is-to-sue-the-force-for-damages/a38456005.html

I hope he does sue.

The whole thing was an absolute disgrace from start to finish but Harris had some cheek saying full details not released!

What a load of balony. We had a number of very detailed articles given a very clear account of what happened and four years after the man is finally cleared Harris tries to pull a fast one on their total incompetence by saying full facts not released!

Just as bad is McEntee yet again backing up Harris. The both of them need to go.

iffandonlyif

Everyone thinks they’re sticking up for the little guy by defending this guard, but it seems to me that the characteristic rude, arrogant guard who fabricated breathalyser tests and cancelled emergency calls is of a piece with this guard going into a locked Garda store, containing cash, drugs, etc, and taking a bike without so much as registering it.

The Garda Siochana is a desperately dysfunctional organisation. It does seem that the guard in this case was hard done by, but if you want a professional police service, it has to start with enforcing proper procedure.

Floppybits

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121933222#Comment_121933222

I think has much more serious things going on than a garda taking a condemned bike to give to a man to help him out until he got things sorted. This should have been sorted in a half hour not 4 years and causing this amount of grief. We have had drugs go missing from evidence, files lost, templemore and the finances there to name but a few but we have had more attention to this guard and this bike than those more serious things.

This is a ridiculous hill for the commissioner to die on, the commissioner should have just taken the hit, held his hands up but no he doubled down and now an assistant commissioner is looking at the report and people who changed their statements. Again ridiculous carry on from the higher echelons of the Gardaí. Hope the guard does take a case against them.

Patrick2010

How much time was spent on investigating the suicide by a senior guard in Ballymun involved in the Hutch/Kinahan feud investigation compared to the loan of a bike in a rural area? Hope that guard sues

mickdw

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121933222#Comment_121933222

Yes put the proper procedures in place. Warn the garda through the correct processes. That would all be progress.

However, he has been cleared. It has taken years but he has been cleared.

Drew Harris should have gone to committee and said, procedure needed to be followed but it took too long and promise to be better in future. Then he should have apologised to the garda and the old man and left it there. Instead, he decided, despite the Garda being cleared to state that the full facts were not known to public. He basically decided to play his last card and **** all over the Garda again to ensure there is always a question mark over his actions.

Harris needs to go.

Seth Brundle

Just for clarity, what exactly did Harris say and could his words be attributed more towards the garda management who changed their statements rather than the garda who gave out the bike?

fawlty682

1000 page report on a triviality. Obviously, there was bad blood in that station or it would not have gone past

the Sergeant in charge. An issue like this would be dealt with in house anywhere else.Involvement of the National Criminal Investigation Gardai, at least 2 Assistant Commissioners,a Chief Super, the DPPs office is pure comedy. They always cry about no Garda resources. This proves what I’ve always thought, they waste the resources they have with poor management, like the HSE etc. The RUC must have been as inefficient, as Harris has shown by his ineptitude down south. Mr Tansey is the right man to sort out Harris and Co.

suvigirl

Sincerely hope that guard is straight down to his solicitors office. Would love to see Harris sued for defamation

mickdw

I believe the garda is taking a compensation case

lawrencesummers

The government will do its usual of offering a nice chunk of taxpayers money as compensation along with a NDA and we will hear no more about it.

The government should never be allowed pay people compensation without publishing details of it. Redact the recipients name by all means but not the amount.

Pauliedragon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121933641#Comment_121933641

Iirc the gards solicitor mentioned that Harris made those comments under privilege so can't be used against him. I'm open to correction though.

MrMusician18

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121933641#Comment_121933641

The commissioner has absolute privilege in a committee meeting afaik.

Mr Disco

Time for the Commissioner to return to the wee six and use his pedantic jobsworth approach up there

suvigirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121934061#Comment_121934061

I doubt it, you may be right but Dail privilege doesn't extend to witnesses in commitee hearings, I don't think?

I'm sure he would come up with some other defence, still love to see him in the box.

Allinall

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121934076#Comment_121934076

If it came to a defamation case, the commissioner wouldn’t have to say a word.

The Garda would be in the box, getting grilled and told to prove his case.

Kaisr Sose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121934046#Comment_121934046

He would be under privlidge at the PAC. On that basis, saying what he did, with all that's out there about this, was inappropriate, cowardly, etc.

suvigirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121934093#Comment_121934093

Shame.

suvigirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121934088#Comment_121934088

Wouldn't be difficult.

Allinall

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121934106#Comment_121934106

Are you a barrister?

suvigirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121934115#Comment_121934115

Do I have to be?

Oscar_Madison

So suing the force- hmmm- good luck with that. All in the detail really around what exactly he’s suing for. I support him I truely do and have done since this story broke but I imagine being a guard there’s all sorts of legislation that protects the hierarchy from legal action - we’ll wait and see but even an attempt to sue just shows how nothing that Garda has to hide.

The taxpayer, you and me, ultimately funded this pile of sh1t investigation which as someone said, could have been sorted with a quiet bollicing by a supervisor then off to the pub and no hard feelings- and yes the elderly man would have got to keep the bike too.

This innuendo is a dangerous precedent and as someone rightly said above, all the hallmarks of a Garda McCabe muddy the waters type disparaging comment - he tried to justify 3 years investigation and unknown grief for the Garda and his family by essentially trying to allude there was more to the story - you certainly don’t say those things in public. The investigation is over - Garda cleared - that’s all he had to say