McCabe asked to leave role as he felt ‘under threat’ from O’Sullivan
Garda whistleblower wanted to step down after challenge to credibility
SERGEANT Maurice McCabe felt “under threat” from then Garda commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan after her lawyers sought to challenge his motivation for raising concerns about malpractice in the force at a behind-closed-doors inquiry.
The whistleblower told his superintendent, Alan Murray, he wanted to leave his post as sergeant in charge of the Garda traffic unit in Mullingar because if anything was to go wrong “it would come down on him like a tonne of bricks”.
The startling conversation occurred three days after lawyers for Ms O’Sullivan indicated at the O’Higgins Commission they would be challenging his motivation and credibility.
Details of the conversation on May 18, 2015, emerged at the Disclosures Tribunal, which is investigating whether Ms O’Sullivan relied on unjustified grounds to discredit Sgt McCabe at the commission.
A memo, written by Supt Murray and sent up the chain of command, said Sgt McCabe “did not feel safe” remaining in the sergeant-in-charge role.
“As an explanation, he indicated the reason was Nóirín O’Sullivan and that he felt under threat,” Supt Murray’s memo said.
Ms O’Sullivan told the tribunal she could understand Sgt McCabe may have felt under pressure at the commission.
But she added: “I was at a loss to know what he meant when he said he was under threat from me and that if something happened I would be down on him like a tonne of bricks, because that was certainly never the impression given.”
During almost four hours of questioning, Ms O’Sullivan defended her decision to instruct lawyers to challenge Sgt McCabe. She said the instruction was based on legal advice and that while credibility and motivation were to be examined, she never considered Sgt McCabe to be “malicious” or lacking integrity.
The legal advice arose from a consultation meeting on May 11, 2015, attended by gardaí and lawyers during which three barristers were briefed on Sgt McCabe’s background.
Tribunal chairman Mr Justice Peter Charleton has said that at the briefing Sgt McCabe was portrayed as a bitter man who was prone to exaggeration.
Ms O’Sullivan was not present and the legal advice was relayed to her afterwards.
It left her with “an unprecedented dilemma”, but ultimately she approved the strategy as she felt his evidence had to be tested. “I was very satisfied that the advice was coming from a competent and professional legal team,” she said.
Ms O’Sullivan said she had been absolutely committed to supporting Sgt McCabe in the workplace and that it “wasn’t an easy decision” to challenge him at the commission.
“I was very aware that it would change Sgt McCabe’s perception of me,” she said.
The briefing appears to have included some of the background to the Ms D case, where Sgt McCabe was cleared of an allegation of sexually assaulting the daughter of a colleague.
The barristers were told he was unhappy the full DPP directions were not circulated.
“It certainly seems to me Sgt McCabe was very frustrated by his perception this matter was not being dealt with adequately by [Garda] management,” said the former commissioner.
After a row developed over the legal strategy on May 15, the second day of the commission, lawyers for Ms O’Sullivan were asked to reconfirm their instructions. This led to a flurry of phone calls to her from Chief Supt Fergus Healy, the Garda liaison officer to the commission.
Initially Ms O’Sullivan suggested they seek an adjournment. When this was rejected she said the lawyers were to proceed with their instructions.
Her decision was relayed immediately after a 14-minute phone call with then-Department of Justice secretary general Noel Waters. Ms O’Sullivan said she didn’t have a specific recollection of the call but believes she would have mentioned the legal row at the commission as well as the foiling of a planned terror attack on Prince Charles, who was due to visit Ireland the following week.