GARDA BAIL FAILINGS PROBE OVER HORROR RAPE ATTACK
Breach of rules can be tragic
Eoin Berkley GARDAI failings are to be probed over a sex beast who raped a Spanish student after breaching his bail terms.
Eoin Berkley, 25, was jailed for 14 years on Thursday after abducting and terrorising his victim during a 21-hour ordeal.
The pervert had been on bail for a separate offence at the time when one of the terms was to stay out of central Dublin.
A Garda spokeswoman said a senior officer is to investigate the failures in enforcing the accused’s release terms.
She said: “An Assistant Commissioner has been appointed to examine the policing issues raised during the court case which concluded with the sentencing of Eoin Berkley.
“The Assistant Commissioner will examine issues such as
from Dublin city centre but did not stick to the conditions.
He also has a series of serious convictions and had consequently been identified by the justice system as dangerous.
Breaching a term of bail should have meant it was revoked.
Unfortunately, this is not the first communications between divisions in Dublin city centre and Garda monitoring of bail conditions of the convicted individual.
“The review will establish the lessons to be learnt and whether changes to processes are needed.”
Berkley attacked the then 18-year-old victim in his tent at
time failure to enforce these conditions has resulted in tragic consequences.
Fianna Fail introduced legislation last year to make our bail laws stricter so the presumption would be that a person who had already been convicted of a serious offence would not get bail if charged with a derelict bottle factory in South Dublin last July.
Meanwhile, the Rape Crisis Network has urged authorities to re-examine State legislation.
A spokeswoman said: “Gardai did not have powers to arrest him at the time of his breach of bail prior to this offence so that has been changed.
“The Criminal Justice Act did bring that in – there are some small things that we can look at.” another serious offence. The Irish people voted overwhelmingly for this by way of referendum in 1996.
Unfortunately, the Government opposed this legislation.
It needs to look again at this issue to recognise the public’s legitimate concerns and the need to strengthen our bail laws.