Domestic violence, sexual misconduct and theft among reasons for recent Garda suspensions

An Garda Síochána has suspended 33 members of the force this year for reasons including domestic violence, sexual misconduct, and disclosing information.

A total of 55 officers were also found in breach of Garda discipline and were handed €9,570 in fines, an average of about €175 each, according to information released under FOI.

An Garda said six officers had been suspended due to allegations related to domestic violence with six more were suspended for “sexual misconduct”.

There were four suspensions for assault, another for what was described as “improper association”, and three for driving under the influence.

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Gardaí said two officers had been suspended for theft, two more for fraud or extortion, and one for “inappropriate conduct”.

The force also revealed that one officer had been suspended for disclosing information and two others for discreditable conduct.

There was one suspension for inappropriate use of Garda IT systems, and two for the falsification of statements during investigations.

Another officer was temporarily taken off the force for a drugs incident while one garda was suspended for road traffic offences.

Gardaí said there had only been a single dismissal from the force so far this year and that this had been for “non-attendance”.

The highest fine was four weeks’ pay for one officer who was found to have been in “neglect of duty”, while three weeks’ pay were docked from two officers for discreditable conduct.

A fourth person was hit with a two-week pay deduction for discreditable conduct, according to the records released by An Garda.

There were two €1,000 fines for discreditable conduct, as well as seven fines ranging from €350 to €600 for neglect of duty.

An Garda Síochána has three main avenues open to them for dealing with breaches of discipline among its members.

Minor breaches are ordinarily dealt with through “advice, caution, [or] warning” while less serious breaches can result in reprimands, warnings, cautions, advice, or the docking of one or two weeks’ pay.

The most serious breaches can be dealt with through deduction of four week’s pay, a reduction in rank, dismissal, or a requirement to resign or retire.

Asked about the records, a Garda spokesman said it did not comment on internal disciplinary proceedings.