An inquiry into an Irish Garda policeman who was alleged to have stolen a bike from a police station has placed a spotlight on an ongoing internal struggle within the ranks. Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, advocating for change within the Irish Police Force, faces opposition from the Garda Representative Association (GRA), a body that champions the rights of roughly 11,000 lower ranking personnel.
The GRA portrays the case very simply. A detective from the midlands, who lent a bicycle to an elderly retired farmer to help him stay fit during the 2020 lockdown, was charged with theft and suspended for three years while under investigation until ultimately being cleared of charges. The GRA views this as evidence of the Garda force losing its grip due to Harris’s leadership. However, the commissioner sees it differently; a state property was unlawfully taken by an officer on duty. A matter he considered grave enough to warrant an inquiry.
Certain aspects of the case are puzzling. The decision to use the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, a branch that handles serious crimes, seems too extreme for an alleged bike theft case. The duration of the criminal and disciplinary investigations (around four years), considering the detective was suspended for most of this period, seems inordinate. Greater clarity on these points from the Garda Headquarters would be helpful.
Nevertheless, Harris has stressed that the bike belonged to the State. The unauthorised act of the detective taking it, a good registered under the Garda’s Property & Exhibits Management System (PEMS), bore deeper implications. PEMS is a system used by the Garda force to safely monitor and track items collected or found by the Garda, such as weapons and drugs. Harris recognises the case offers learnings for the Garda, but emphasizes that the integrity of the PEMS system was threatened.
Although some aspects of the case are unsettling, it must not be used as a tool to undermine the crucial reforms that have long been needed. The deterioration in disciple within the Garda police force and the numerous scandals that surfaced in the ten years prior to Harris’s appointment in 2018 makes these reforms even more crucial.
Over the past few years, various instances have surfaced requiring the legal system to handle cases involving serving or ex-members of the Garda implicated, and found guilty, of grave offences. There is an ongoing necessity to assure that other offenders in similar positions are dismissed. Nonetheless, both Harris and the Justice Minister, Helen McEntee, have recognised the imperative of introducing a swifter and more productive mechanism for probing accusations of misconduct against gardaí.