The events of late 2013 and early 2014 now seem like the perfect storm of politics colliding with a policing and justice system not accustomed to the breakneck speed of blame and soundbite that dominates Leinster House.

In a window of just a few months, Martin Callinan, then Garda commissioner; Alan Shatter, then minister for justice; and Oliver Connolly, then confidential recipient for An Garda Síochána, all lost their jobs as controversies raged around the force.

Garda whistleblower Maurice McCabe was highlighting concerns about the penalty points system and also furnished a dossier of alleged malpractice in An Garda Síochána to Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, who then passed it to Taoiseach Enda Kenny.

The Guerin report – essentially a scoping exercise that led to the O’Higgins commission of investigation, whose report was published this week – led to Shatter’s resignation.

Pushed

Shatter claims he was effectively pushed by Kenny, and disputed how Seán Guerin SC conducted his investigation. Guerin accused Shatter of not paying heed to McCabe’s claims but did not speak to Shatter during the course of his inquiries.

Callinan famously retired after a late-night visit from the then secretary general of the Department of Justice, Brian Purcell – another who lost his job in the maelstrom of controversy of those few months.

Callinan’s retirement preceded Shatter’s and came about, however, because of concern about the taping of phone calls at Garda stations, an issue that arose during the process of discovery during the case being taken against the State by Ian Bailey.

The O’Higgins report essentially vindicates Shatter’s position and Callinan’s retirement was dealt with last year by the interim report of the Fennelly Commission, which is examining the taping issue.

Fennelly’s inquiries into the wider issue of taping continue and it is due to report by September, although it may request an extension of time.

Both Callinan and Shatter were also embroiled in the alleged bugging of the offices of the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, which was also largely found to be a non-issue.

Arguably the most serious issue the pair were involved in at that time was the use by Shatter of confidential information about Independent TD Mick Wallace, provided to him by Callinan, during a live RTÉ television broadcast.

If any of the controversies at the time should have led to either losing office, it was that one.

Callinan’s description of the actions of the whistleblowers as “disgusting” also made him a political liability.

Undue haste

Shatter’s eventual resignation was caused by an issue which it now transpires he handled correctly, the McCabe allegations. Kenny acted with undue haste in forcing the issue and pushing for his resignation.

Yet the politics of the situation – with the then Fine Gael-Labour government facing local and European elections – meant that resignations and retirements, in the wake of a string of controversies, were likely.

Callinan and Shatter had become public liabilities, and that is what often counts in politics, if not in justice.