GRA conference: I was assaulted on duty too - Nóirín O’Sullivan

Nóirín O’Sullivan says she wants to hear from any gardaí who feel they were not treated properly after assault.

GRA conference: I was assaulted on duty too - Nóirín O’Sullivan

Garda Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan has said that during her career she has been “bitten, spat at and assaulted” on a number of occasions, once leading to “a dislocated shoulder.”

The country’s most senior garda said she can empathise with frontline members of the force who claim the number of attacks on gardaí is on the rise.

The commissioner said she also realised that the families of serving gardaí were constantly worrying about them getting injured while on duty.

“I can empathise with all of our members who go out every single day to do a good job,” she said.

“I can empathise hugely with their families who wait to see do they come home safely. I know what that feels like. We treat every single assault on every single one of our members extremely seriously.”

She made the comments after members of the Garda Representative Association (GRA) called for mandatory one-year prison sentences for anybody convicted of assaulting a member of the emergency services.

The GRA has claimed that force management do not take assaults seriously and that very few perpetrators end up in jail.

“If there are individual members who feel they have not been treated appropriately by their local Garda management, we want to hear about that because we want to do something about it,” the commissioner said.

She added that, in her case, some of the people who assaulted her were prosecuted and others were not.

She said mandatory sentencing for assaults on members of the emergency services was a matter for legislators.

Tánaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald maintained that legislation on assaults on gardaí was “already strong”, but said she was looking at legislation in use in Scotland.

She said she received advice that mandatory jail sentences might not be the answer in all cases.

Meanwhile, the GRA conference in Salthill, Co Galway, heard that one in five gardaí suffer from severe stress because of the nature of their jobs.

GRA president Ciaran O’Neill said extensive research confirmed that the pressures of law enforcement puts officers “at real risk of high blood pressure, insomnia, dangerous levels of destructive stress hormones, heart problems, post traumatic stress disorder and suicide”.

He said the practical impact of the job’s demands and responsibilities on stress levels in the force resulted in 32% of gardaí experiencing above-average levels of stress, whilst one fifth suffer from “severe” stress levels.

Garda O’Neill added that shift work is itself detrimental to health. He said academic research showed it gives rise to increased risk of type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease and an elevated risk of breast, bowel and prostrate cancer.

“When coupled with occupational stress, life expectancy and quality of life are diminished for police officers.”

Delegates attending the conference said many of their colleagues injured on duty simply did not bother reporting assaults as they knew management would do nothing about them.

Garda James Morrisroe from the Cavan/Monaghan Garda division, said bodycams had been introduced to great effect by many police forces in Britain and they should be used here.

He said they would be vital for providing evidence in courts, including assaults on gardaí.

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