Mistaken suspect awarded €10,070 for minor injury caused by forced vehicle stop by gardaí

A motorist has been awarded €10,070 for a minor soft tissue injury suffered when forced to stop by gardaí who mistakenly suspected he might be driving a getaway car following an armed burglary.

Pawel Galazka (55) lost his personal injuries case in the Circuit Court but, on appeal, persuaded the High Court that the defendant, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, is liable for the incident in September 2018.

Mr Justice Tony O’Connor found no contributory negligence on the part of Mr Galazka and awarded him €9,000 in general damages and €1,070 in special damages to compensate for his low-impact injury that aggravated an earlier sports injury to his knee.

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Mr Galazka, a maintenance worker of Clonard Road, Crumlin, Dublin 12, told the Circuit Court he was travelling with his family when a Garda Audi Q7 tried to block him as he approached the Walkinstown roundabout in Dublin late on September 25th. He said he jolted forward and hit his knees off the plastic interior of his 17-year-old vehicle, which had to be scrapped.

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He claimed armed gardaí jumped out, pointed guns and ordered him to put his hands on the dashboard.

The Minister filed a full defence to the claim and denied any weapons were pulled. One member of the unit said he saw children in the car and realised this was not the vehicle that had been involved in an aggravated burglary at a nearby industrial estate.

In the High Court, the defendant alleged Mr Galazka had failed to check his mirrors when going into the right lane before the roundabout and failed to check his blind spot.

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The garda driving the vehicle was exempt from certain Road Traffic Act requirements that apply to other motorists, the Minister’s lawyers submitted.

Mr Justice O’Connor held that Mr Galazka responded in a “reasonably quick manner” to the “unorthodox” driving of the Audi. He did not find any recklessness or negligence on the part of Mr Galazka in his approach to the roundabout.

He found no satisfactory explanation for why gardaí had to stop the plaintiff before the roundabout rather than allowing him to proceed through the junction. Considering the Garda Síochána code, he held that it was not imperative to take the risk.

He found no adequate regard was given to advice that it is “better to tail the suspect” and to the conditions presenting before the roundabout.

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It was reasonable for Mr Galazka to be startled and confused and, on the balance of probabilities, the Audi occupied his blind spot, said Mr Justice O’Connor.

The judge said Mr Galazka took three sick days from work and failed to satisfy the court that his ongoing complaints are attributable to the low-impact collision. Mr Galazka told the court he tore his anterior cruciate ligament in his knee when playing football some 35 years ago.

The judge concluded the plaintiff suffered a low-impact injury that aggravated his knee condition.

The damage falls within the minor category, and the court’s award must be proportionate and reasonable, he said.

Mr Justice O’Connor said he would hear from both sides as to final orders and liability for legal costs.

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