A SHOOTING enthusiast has won his High Court challenge to a Garda refusal, on public safety grounds, to give him a licence for a deer hunting rifle.
In a decision with implications for similar challenges, Ms Justice Maureen Clark ruled the Garda applied the wrong criteria in that they focused on the nature of the weapon rather than the licence applicant, and she directed that the application be reconsidered in accordance with her findings.
Gardaí had refused the licence for the Steyr Mannlicher .308 calibre rifle because, it was claimed, its firepower posed an unacceptable risk to the safety of the public.
Thomas O'Leary (49), Dromhall Park, Killarney, Co Kerry, had challenged, in judicial review proceedings, the decision by Garda Supt Michael Maher of Killarney to refuse the licence.
Finding in favour of Mr O'Leary yesterday, the judge said Supt Maher had "looked at the gun rather than the applicant" and had ignored Mr O'Leary's record as "a good shot and competent sportsman". While she had great respect for the accumulated wisdom of a senior garda in relation to local conditions and the safe use of firearms, she had difficulty accepting the reasoning applied in refusing the licence.
Mr O'Leary had argued that the refusal of the Garda to substitute his existing licence for a lower calibre .243 firearm with a licence for the larger calibre .308 was unreasonable and unsustainable.
The higher calibre rifle was more suited to his needs for recreational hunting and ensures a "more humane" death for the deer, he said.
Mr O'Leary argued that Supt Maher had licensed a similar calibre rifle for another gun club member which was designed for military use and could shoot bullets 100 feet per second faster than the weapon Mr O'Leary sought to license, it was claimed.
Supt Maher said he believed licensing the Steyr for use in an area of Kerry, where there were a lot of hillwalkers, constituted an unnecessary risk to the public.
He had obtained a report from the Garda ballistics section which stated that increasing the calibre of weapon used for deer hunting was unnecessary, as the .243 calibre rifle is most suitable for deer hunting.
The report also stated that while armour-piercing "full metal jacket" bullets for the .308 are not supposed to be used for deer hunting, such ammunition is "readily available".
The judge said that while she had no criticism of Supt Maher's own acquired knowledge and discretion, he did not seem to have accepted all the views expressed by his own ballistics expert.
Ms Justice Clark said Supt Maher had taken the "wrong approach" in that his mind was exercised by the military character of the gun rather than Mr O'Leary's capacity to safely use it.
There was no suggestion at any stage that Mr O'Leary lacked the skill to handle a more powerful rifle, or that his previous history of deer shooting presented a risk to hillwalkers, she said.
Mr O'Leary had never been disqualified from owning a firearm and had a safe storage system for his guns, she added.
Ms Justice Clark said if Supt Maher had concerns about public safety, he had the power to attach conditions to the type and quantity of ammunition used by Mr O'Leary.