Officer abuse ‘must end’

INCIDENTS involving people shoving camera phones in the faces of gardaí and hurling abuse at them must end, the Justice Minister has said, as she vowed to tackle ‘insidious’ behaviour against members of the force.

Helen McEntee, inset, said the Government has increased the maximum sentence for attacks on officers from seven years to 12 because of the surge in assaults.

However, she has resisted changing the legislation to impose mandatory sentences for attacks on members of An Garda Síochána.

The Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors, which is holding its annual conference in Westport, has called for the changes.

Ms McEntee, attending the conference yesterday, said: ‘In recent years, more insidious behaviours have started to come through, not just online but in person.

‘We have seen an increase in assaults. That’s why we’ve increased the mandatory sentence for assaulting a member of An Garda Síochána from seven [years] to 12, reflecting the seriousness of this. ‘That’s why I’m introducing body cameras. It’s not just to support gardaí in collecting evidence and bringing forward prosecutions, but also to protect them. ‘The day now where people shove cameras in gardaí faces, where there is abuse hurled at them, has to end and gardaí have to have the ability to be able to record a situation as it actually happens and to provide that as evidence as well. She continued: ‘When we introduce facial recognition technology, if a member is to be assaulted, that technology can be applied. The Fine Gael minister also said she has provided funding for mental health supports for gardaí. ‘I’ve worked with all of the associations, including the AGSI, to put those structures in place,’ she said.