13 suspended gardaí accused of driving under the influence

Total of 94 officers stood down over various offences

There are currently 94 gardaí suspended from An Garda Síochána, Commissioner Drew Harris has said, 13 of them for allegedly driving under the influence.

Speaking at a Policing Authority meeting in Limerick yesterday, Mr Harris confirmed 14 gardaí were suspended due to alleged dishonesty offences and 13 were suspended due to alleged sexual motivation offences.

Eight guards were suspended due to allegations of domestic violence or coercive control, while nine were suspended due to the alleged disclosure of information from the Pulse computer system. There were eight gardaí suspended due to alleged criminal association. The other suspensions were related to issues such as assaults, abuse of processes and drugs.

Mr Harris said it is “very regrettable” that anyone would be suspended from the organisation and that it is not a decision taken lightly.

He added he was pleased to say overall there is a downward trajectory in suspensions, and that the number of investigations and complaints being made against gardaí is reducing.

When asked about his confidence in the suitability of all members of An Garda Sióchána to be in the force, Mr Harris said that “there is a huge trust”.

“The vast majority, there is huge trust, an implicit trust placed in them in terms of the manner in which they conduct their duties,” he said.

As the number of road deaths so far this year has risen to 69 this week, Mr Harris spoke of road policing and the requirement that uniformed gardaí will spend 30 minutes per shift policing the roads – a model borrowed from Sweden.

“It seems to be successful there in terms of just engaging all uniformed personnel to some extent,” he said.

He said there has been a 42pc increase in breath tests performed compared to last month since the action has been introduced.

“In the first 12 days of the 30-minute operation, commencing from April 12 to 24, we saw 8,000 breath tests performed,” he said.

In the first quarter of this year, gardaí seized almost 11,000 vehicles for offences such as having no insurance, no tax, no NCT or unaccompanied learner drivers.

“Similarly, we’ve seen an increase in the number of vehicles detained – we saw 1,400 vehicles detained, it was a 25pc increase,” Mr Harris said.

There have been 344 detections for driving while intoxicated, marking a 22pc increase.

Mr Harris added there are plans for “further rollout” of speed cameras and speed detection devices this year.

“When we look at the road traffic collisions, particularly the number of fatalities involving single-vehicle collisions, but also pedestrians killed, and passengers killed, certainly speed is a real element,” he said.

“Speed is such a determinant as to the violence of a road traffic collision. So I think that’s an area particularly where we will have to pay extra attention and actually seek the money for additional investment.”

‘Other suspensions were related to issues such as assaults, abuse of processes and drugs’