Courts

Serving garda convicted of assault and attempting to pervert course of justice

Sgt William Doyle (52) of Waterford Garda station is ordered to do 80 hours of community service after being convicted of assaulting a prisoner

A Garda has been convicted of assaulting a prisoner in custody and attempting to pervert the course of justice. Photograph: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

Barry Roche
Fri Jul 5 2024 - 13:39

A serving member of An Garda Síochána has been ordered to do 80 hours of community service after a judge convicted him of assaulting a prisoner in custody and attempting to pervert the course of justice by instructing a subordinate to falsify a custody record.

Sgt William Doyle (52) of Waterford Garda station had denied both charges when he first appeared at Waterford District Court earlier this year.

On Friday, Judge John O’Leary delivered his reserved decision in the case and found Doyle guilty of both counts.

Judge O’Leary said the second charge, where he found him guilty of attempting to pervert the course of justice by instructing probation Gda Rachel Pratt, was the more serious of the two offences and merited a custodial sentence.

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“It must be acknowledged that any serving Garda must know that to have any part in falsifying the custody record of a prisoner is a most serious matter and in this case it would have tended to pervert the course of justice in concealing or failing to report the incident in the AFIS [Automated Fingerprint Identification System] room

“The reason is that the State, the accused, the defence of any accused and the public, need to have full confidence that the custody record and treatment of an accused in custody are all in accordance with the law.

“When those entrusted with upholding the law break the law the public need to know that the same law and due process will be applied without fear or favour to uniformed gardaí or other officers of the law.”

He also described Garda Pratt as a “very honest” witness, I used the word credible so if we could change that as well it would be great

However, given Doyle’s exemplary record of 30 years of service in the Garda, including his work as a family liaison officer, he said he would impose a community service order of 80 hours in lieu of prison time and he took the assault charge into account.

During the three-day trial, Garda Pratt testified she was the member in charge in the station on March 9th, 2022, when a prisoner became very aggressive after he was brought into the AFIS room.

Garda Pratt she had been in the public office when she heard “commotion and shouting” coming from the room and when she went to investigate, she saw two gardaí in the corridor outside.

She said when she opened the door to the room, she saw Doyle standing over the suspect who was sitting in a chair. “Sgt Doyle had him pinned against the window – he was using his forearm pressed between his neck and chest area,” she said.

Doylerejected the suggestion he had put his forearm on the man’s neck, saying he was in his office across the room from the room when he saw the prisoner was becoming aggressive, so he went over to try and calm him down.

He said the prisoner was continuing to be aggressive despite asking him to be quiet, so he put his forearm across his chest to force him back into the chair after the man reached up and pulled off his tie, which fell to the floor.

He also denied punching the man in the chest in the custody area.

He also denied he also instructed Garda Pratt not to “mention what happened in the AFIS room” when she went into his office to ask him what she should fill into the custody register .

Garda Pratt had told Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission investigators she “didn’t feel right doing it but I did it”.

Doyle said that she was incorrect. “I said: ‘Rachel you have to put it in the custody record – I had to defend myself,’ she asked me what she should write in the register, and I said: ‘I can’t put words in your mouth, but the matter needs to be recorded.”

However, Judge O’Leary said he found Garda Pratt to be a credible witness.

Barry Roche

Barry Roche

Barry Roche is Southern Correspondent of The Irish Times

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