Garda Síochána
Garda Síochána na hÉireann[Literal translation: "Guardians of the Peace of Ireland"], commonly known as
An Garda Síochána (
pronounced or ) in full
collective noun form or, simply,
Garda in short
collective noun form.
Gardaí ( or ) is the
nominative plural- for example, three gardaí. An Garda Síochána is the national
police force of the
Republic of Ireland. The force was originally called the "Civic Guard". The force is headed by the Garda Commissioner who is appointed by the
Irish Government, and the forces headquarters are located in the
Phoenix Park in
Dublin.
The full
English translation of the force's name is
Guardians of the Peace of Ireland. However, neither this term nor the word
police is used when referring to the force as a whole; instead the term
Garda is used. The plural
Irish word
gardaí is used when referring to members of the force collectively, with
guards often used as a colloquiallism. Female officers were once officially referred to as
bangharda, but this term has been depreciated in favor of
garda or "guard", regardless of the officer's gender. However,
bangharda is still used in conversation, much like
fireman is used in place of the gender-neutral term
firefighter.
 |
A member of the motorcycle unit of the Garda Síochána. |
The force is headed by the
Commissioner. His immediate subordinates are the two Deputy Commissioners, who are in charge respectively of Strategic and Resource Management and Operations. Strategic and Resource Management primarily deals with national organisational and technical matters and does not deal with crime directly, the majority of operational and staffing matters coming under Operations. There are ten Assistant Commissioners: six are geographically based, and the others are assigned to various national support roles. A
civilian Director of Finance is placed at a similar organisational level to the Assistant Commissioners.
The six geographical Assistant Commissioners command the six force Regions, currently
Dublin Metropolitan, Eastern, Northern, Southern, South-Eastern and Western Regions. Below the Assistant Commissioners are approximately twenty-five
Chief Superintendents, who supervise
Divisions. Each Division contains a number of Districts, each of which is commanded by a
Superintendent, who is assisted by a number of
Inspectors. Each District has a number of Subdistricts, which are usually commanded by
Sergeants.
Typically each Subdistrict contains only one
station. A varying number of Gardaí will be based at each station depending on its importance. Most of these hold the basic rank of Garda, which was referred to as the rank of Guard until 1972 (the equivalent of
Constable in
British police forces). The most junior members of the force are Students, whose duties vary depending on their training progress and who are often given clerical duties if assigned to a station when not in college.
The force also has approximately 1,000 civilian support staff, including a
Chief Medical Officer. These civilian posts include a diverse range of professionals, such as administrative staff, accounting staff, drivers, information technology staff,
photographers, researchers and teachers.
Uniformed members of An Garda Síochána do not carry
firearms. It is a tradition of the service that standard policing should be carried out in both rural and urban areas by uniformed officers equipped only with a wooden
truncheon. The force when originally created was armed, but in a
u-turn the Provisional Government decided to reverse the decision and reconstitute the force as an unarmed police force, in contrast to the refusal of the British
Dublin Castle administration which had refused appeals from the
Royal Irish Constabulary that that force be disarmed.
In the words of first Commissioner,
Michael Staines,
TD, "The Garda Síochána will succeed not by force of arms or numbers, but on their moral authority as servants of the people". According to
Garvin such a decision gave the new force a cultural ace: "the taboo on killing unarmed men and women who could not reasonably be seen as spies and informers."
According to a recent government report, 3,000 (out of 12,000) members of the force are armed — this includes the
Emergency Response Unit and
Special Branch as well as the majority of detectives.
Garda Síochána patrol cars are mainly white, with two small blue strips and one large luminous green strip running down the centre. The Garda badge [
1] is also on the patrol cars. Garda patrol cars are identical to civilian vehicles and feature no engine or performance improvements; however, higher performance cars are normally bought, such as the
Ford Mondeo 2.5 V6.
The Scott Medal for Bravery is the highest honour for bravery and valour which can be awarded to a member of the Garda Síochána. The first medals were funded by
Colonel Walter Scott, an honorary Commissioner of the
New York Police Department.
To mark the
United States link, the
American English spelling of
valor is used on the medal. The Commissioner of An Garda Síochána chooses the recipients of the medal, which is presented by the
Minister for Justice.
In
2000, Anne McCabe - widow of
Garda Jerry McCabe, who was murdered by the
Provisional IRA while it was officially on
ceasefire - accepted the Scott Medal for Bravery that had been awarded posthumously to her husband.
The
Civic Guard was formed by the
Provisional Government in February
1922 to take over the responsibility of policing the fledgling
Irish Free State. It replaced the
Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) and the
Irish Republican Police. In August 1922 the force accompanied
Michael Collins when he met the
Lord Lieutenant in
Dublin Castle.
[According to Irish constitutional theory he met the Lord Lieutenant to accept the surrender of Dublin Castle. However, as far as the British government were concerned, the purpose of the meeting was for the Lord Lieutenant to formally appoint Collins as Chairman of the Provisional Government.]The Garda Síochána Act (also known as the Temporary Provisions Act) enacted after the creation of the Irish Free State on the
8 August 1923,
[ ] provided for the creation of "a force of police to be called and known as 'The Garda Síochána'". Under section 22, The Civic Guard were deemed to have been established under and to be governed by the Act. The law therefore effectively renamed the existing force.
In
Dublin, policing remained the responsibility of the capital's own local police force, the
Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP) until
1925. In that year the DMP merged with the Garda Síochána, and since then the Garda has been the only police force in the state now known as the
Republic of Ireland.
Garda Commissioners
The first Commissioner,
Michael Staines, who was a
Pro-Treaty member of
Dáil Éireann, held office for only eight months. It was his successors,
Eoin O'Duffy and
Éamon Broy, who played a central role in the development of the force. Broy had greatly assisted the
IRA during the
Anglo-Irish War, while serving with the
DMP. O'Duffy later became a short-lived political leader of the quasi-
fascist Blueshirts before heading to
Spain to fight alongside
Francisco Franco's Nationalists in the
Spanish Civil War. Broy's fame grew in the
1990s when he featured in the film
Michael Collins, in which it was misleadingly suggested that he had been murdered by the
British during the
War of Independence, when in reality he lived for decades and headed the Garda Síochána from
1933 to
1938.
One later Commissioner,
Edmund Garvey was sacked by the
Fianna Fáil government of
Jack Lynch in
1978 without reason, other than a claim that the government had lost confidence in him. He won 'unfair dismissal' legal proceedings against the government. The case made its way to the
Supreme Court which found the action of the government improper. This outcome required the passing of the Garda Síochána Act, 1979 to retrospectively validate the actions of Garvey's successor since he had become Commissioner.
[ ] His successor in turn,
Patrick McLoughlin, was forced to resign along with his deputy in
1983 over his peripheral involvement in a political scandal.The current commissioner is
Noel Conroy.
Traditionally the perception of the force within Ireland has been positive, especially when compared to the
Royal Ulster Constabulary; however several scandals have undermined it.
Like most police forces there have been many allegations of discourtesy, harassment, confiscating a person's property but using it for their own purposes, aggressive interrogation techniques, perjury, etc.
[Garda Síochána Complaints Board - Annual Report 2005]While most allegations have not been proven, many
out of court settlements have been made in favour of
complainants. A total of 1,173 complaints were made by the public against the Gardaí in 2005.
Sallins train robbery
One of the first charges of serious impropriety against the force rose out of the handling of the
Sallins Train Robbery (March 1976); this case eventually lead to a serious
miscarriage of justice and accusations of a "Heavy Gang" operating within the force which intimidated and tortured the accused. This eventually led to a
Presidential pardon for one of the accused.
Kerry Babies
 |
Garda Mounted Unit |
Several less high profile scandals, for instance the
Kerry Babies Tribunal, occurred over the next decade or so which further tarnished the force's reputation.
Child sexual abuse
The Ferns Report describes as 'wholly inadequate' the handling of one of eight formal complaints made to
Wexford gardaí but considers that the remaining formal complaints were handled in an effective, professional and sensitive manner
[The Ferns Report, October 25 2005].
Frank McBrearty and the Morris Tribunal
In the 1990s and early 2000s An Garda Síochána faced a series of allegations, including suggestions of corrupt and dishonest policing in
County Donegal (which is the subject of a judicial inquiry, the
Morris Tribunal). The tribunal found that some County Donegal gardaí had invented an
IRA informer, made bombs and claimed credit for locating them, and attempted to frame
Raphoe publican
Frank McBrearty Junior for murder — the latter case was recently settled in a €1.5m settlement with the State.
The Morris Tribunal stated in a report to the
Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform that "proper discipline has been lost from An Garda Síochána", suggesting that a few mischief-makers have abused their positions within the Garda and used the disciplinary process to damage the force.
The tribunal also expressed concern that recruits are brought into an undisciplined culture that has the potential to do great damage to them in the longer term, and warned that a "terrible and costly" waste of talent will occur if the situation continues.
The existing disciplinary code for gardaí is identified as having created a significant problem by being of great assistance to the undisciplined minority. The tribunal has recommended that the Government takes urgent steps to come up with a new simplified code. The Government has stated that it is to introduce a code of discipline for Gardaí.
Eddie Fullerton
The family of
Eddie Fullerton, a
Buncrana Sinn Féin councillor killed in his home by members of the
Ulster Defence Association in 1991, have criticised the Gardaí's handling of the investigation and in 2005 they started a campaign for an inquiry.
Abbeylara shooting
On
April 20,
2000 members of the Garda
Emergency Response Unit (ERU) shot dead, from behind, 27-year-old
John Carthy at the end of a 25-hour siege as he left his home in
Toneymore,
Abbeylara,
County Longford. Four bullets were fired; two by Garda McCabe and two by Sgt Jackson.
There were allegations made of inappropriate handling of the situation and of the overuse of armed force by the Gardaí; a "shoot to kill" policy. This led to a Garda inquiry.
Subsequently, a
Tribunal of Inquiry, the
Barr Tribunal under the Chairmanship of Mr Justice
Robert Barr, into the facts and circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting was established on
July 1 2002. The hearing of evidence was completed on
December 7 2004. It was expected to report its findings within six months of this date but publication of its Report was delayed until
July 20 2006.
The official findings of the
Barr Tribunal were that Sgt Michael Jackson made 14 mistakes in his role as negotiator during the siege, and that he failed to make reals efforts to achieve resolution during the armed stand-off. It further stated however that Sgt Jackson was limited by lack of experience and resources (
pyschologists, solicitors, dogs).
The tribunal recommended that there be an urgent review of Garda command structures, and that the
ERU be equipped with stun guns and other non-lethal options, including "non-compliant firearms support police dogs". (Non-compliant dogs are 'attack' dogs who will bite or bring a person to the ground on command.)
The tribunal further recommended a formal working arrangement between Gardai and State psychologists, and improvements in Garda training (especially in the context of
ERU in siege situations, including those with mental illness as a factor). This included a recommendation that local Garda superintendents undergo refresher training for one week every year as scene commanders and a similar refresher course for
ERU officers of the rank of inspector of superintendent. Garda Commissioner Conroy, in a letter to the family of John Carthy, stated that the force was 'truly apologetic' for his death.
[Irish Independent, August 11 2006 'Top garda apologies to Carthy family for fatal siege']Superintendent Joe Shelley
Former Superintendent Joe Shelley, whose failure to interview
John Carthy was cited in The
Barr Tribunal Report as "extraordinary", and who was also severely criticised in the Report of the
Morris Tribunal into the controversial death of Richie Barron, was awarded a top-up bonus of €110,000 when he took early retirement in
July 2005. Mr Justice Morris described Shelleys probe as
"prejudiced, tendentious, utterly negligent in the highest degree"
[Irish Independent, July 24 2006 'Garda got €110,000 bonus depite chequered job history' ].
Prime Time 2004
In 2004, an
RTÉ Prime Time documentary accused elements within the Garda of abusing their powers by physically assaulting people arrested. A retired
Circuit Court judge (W. A. Murphy) suggested that some members of the force had committed
perjury in criminal trials before him, while a
Minister of State (
Dick Roche) (junior government minister) accused police in one instance of "torture". The Garda Commissioner accused the television programme of lacking balance.
Reclaim the streets demonstration 2004
The Prime Time documentary followed hot on the heels of footage published by the
Independent Media Centre Ireland showing attacks by Gardaí on
Reclaim the Streets demonstrators.
One Garda shown in this footage was later convicted of
assault, while several other Gardaí were acquitted of this offense.
Gay and lesbian perception
A report released in July 2006 by gay rights organisation
Johnny found that 86% of people who frequent gay and lesbian establishments feel that the Gardai are not doing enough to tackle reported homophobic crime in Ireland. Further, 80% of those surveyed as part of the report and who suffered a hate attack did not report the crime to the Gardai. The main reasons cited for not reporting the attack were the fear of a homophobic response, felt no action would be taken, difficulty talking to the Gardai and fear of being judged, previous reports of attacks were not followed up, previous reports were laughed at or greeted with total indifference, didn't feel the police would do anything about it or be sensitive to the rights of members of the LGBT community. 36% of victims did not report their attack because they had zero confidence in the Gardai while 30% were not aware of the availability of gay and lesbian liasion officers. The report concluded that all Gardai should be sent for training in anti-homophobia and hetrosexism training. [
2]
The
Minister for Justice, Equality & Law Reform appointed four member of this advisory team on
August 2 2006 to advise on implementing change options and addressing management and leadership challenges facing the Gardaí, promoting a culture of performance management; succession planning; the recruitment of civilians with specialist expertise and improving training. The civilians include Senator
Maurice Hayes, Emer Daly former director of strategic planning and risk management at Axa Insurance, Maurice Keane, former group chief executive at
Bank of Ireland and Dr Michael Mulreany, assistant director general at the Institute of Public Aministration. There has never been a layer of civilian management in the force before.
In accordance with Section 115 of the Garda Síochána Act, the Inspectorate shall consist of 3 members, to be appointed by the Irish Government. The functions of the Inspectorate,
inter alia, are as follows:
* carry out, at the request or with the consent of the Minister, inspections or inquiries in relation to any particular aspects of the operation and administration of the Garda Síochána,
* submit to the Minister (1) a report on those inspections or inquiries, and (2) if required by the Minister, a report on the operation and administration of the Garda Síochána during a specified period and on any significant developments in that regard during that period, and any such reports will contain recommendations for any action that the Inspectorate considers necessary.
* provide advice to the Minister with regard to best policing practice.
The first Chief Inspector, is former Commissioner of
Boston Police ,
Kathleen M. O'Toole and she reports to the
Minister for Justice, Equality & Law Reform. She commenced this role in July 2006. The two other inspectors are
Robert Olsen and
Gwen M. Boniface.
Olsen was Chief of Police for 8 years of the 800-strong
Minneapolis Police Department policing a city with a population of 382,000. He had a prickly relationship and his former boss, Mayor
R T Rybak who tried to sack Olsen in April 2002, but the Mayor did not secure the support of the City Council at that time and Olsen remined chief until the expiry of his employment contract
[Minnesota Public Radio, April 26 2002 'Chief Olsen: "I'm staying"] [Minneapolis/St Paul City Pages January 4 2006 'Splitsville?'].
Boniface became is a former Commissioner of the 7,000-strong
Ontario Provincial Police. She was one of 3 female police commissioners in Canada when appointed in May 1998.
The Garda Ombudsman Commission is empowered to:
* Directly and independently investigate complaints against members of the Garda Siochána
* Investigate any matter, even where no complaint has been made, where it appears that a Garda may have committed an offence or behaved in a way that would justify disciplinary proceedings
* Investigate any practise, policy or procedure of the Garda Síochána with a view to reducing the incidence of related complaints
The Garda Ombudsman Commission replaces the earlier system of complaints, the Garda Sochana Complaints Board and is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2006. The Garda Síochána Act 2005 provides for the new Commission to replace the old mechanism.
The Members of the Garda Ombudsman Commission are
Mr. Justice Kevin Haugh, a Judge of the High Court is Chairman of the Commission. The other Members are Ms Carmel Foley, formerly the Director of Consumer Affairs and Mr
Conor Brady, former Editor of
The Irish Times and author of a book on the history of the Garda.
The Garda Siochana Act 2005 provides for the establishment of a Garda Siochána Reserve, consisting or 4,000 persons, to assist the Force in performing its functions. Its purpose is to supplement the work of members of the Garda Siochána. The first 900 recruits to the Reserve are to expected be in place by September 2006. They will carry out duties defined by the Garda Commissioner and sanctioned by the
Minister for Justice, Equality & Law Reform.
The Garda Reserve is intended to be a source of local strength and knowledge. Reserve members will be given very carefully selected powers and duties; they will be properly trained for whatever they are asked to do, and they will always work under the supervision of regular members of the Force
Since 1989 An Garda Síochána has undertaken
United Nations peace-keeping duties. Its first such mission was a 50 strong contingent sent to
Namibia. Since then the force has acted in
Angola,
Cambodia,
Cyprus,
Mozambique,
South Africa and the former
Yugoslavia. The force's first fatality, whilst working abroad, was Sergeant Paul M. Reid, who was fatally injured while on duty with the United Nations
UNPROFOR at "Sniper's Alley" in
Sarajevo on
18 May,
1995.
Members of An Garda Síochána also serve in the Embassies of Ireland in
London,
The Hague,
Madrid and
Paris. Members are also seconded to
Europol in The Hague, Holland and
Interpol in Lyon, France. There are also many members working directly for UN and European agencies such as the War Crimes Tribunal.
Sellafield nuclear facility
Under an agreement with the British Government under the
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Garda Síochána and the
Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland are allowed to inspect the
Sellafield nuclear facility,
Cumbria,
England.
*
Criminal Assets Bureau*
Garda Síochána College*
GUBU*
Irish Army Rangers*
Police Service of Northern Ireland*
Royal Ulster Constabulary*
Official site - An Garda Síochána*
History of Irish police forces*
Garda Complaints Board*
Garda Headquarters, Phoenix Park, Dublin*
Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors*
Garda Museum, Dublin Castle*
Garda Síochána mission statement on community policing*
Morris Tribunal*
Garda Síochána Act, 2005
