Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy has expressed “profound regret” at the findings of the Morris tribunal report and has apologised to those who were found to have been mistreated by members of the force.
The sixth Morris report, published this afternoon, found that a number of people were unlawfully arrested and held by gardaí investigating the death of Donegal cattle dealer Richie Barron. It also finds that some were mistreated in custody, mainly through verbal and in some cases physical abuse.
In a statement issued after the report’s publication Mr Murphy said the powers of arrest bestowed on the Garda “carry profound responsibility and the community is entitled to expect that gardaí will exercise those powers appropriately”.
“It is a matter of profound regret to me and to An Garda Síochána that this was not the experience of the individuals whom this report finds to have been mistreated by members of the organisation as identified by Mr Justice Morris.
“I want to take this opportunity to apologise to those people”.
Mr Murphy said it was “deeply disappointing” that the Tribunal found that some members of the Garda were “less than forthright in their dealings with the Tribunal.”
“This report together with previous reports from the Morris Tribunal, have identified significant failings which An Garda Síochána is addressing.”
Mr Murphy said deficiencies identified in the report would inform ongoing Garda training intitiatives.
“These include the recently established Review of Training and Development, the new crime training faculty, the appointment and specialised training of dedicated Senior Investigating Officers and the development of a Major Investigation System to support criminal investigations”, he added.
“The vast majority of gardaí perform their duties in an ethical manner, never violating or abusing the authority granted to them and working at all times to meet the needs of the communities they serve,” the statement said.
“The small minority who fail to observe those professional standards do a grave disservice to their colleagues and dishonour the history and tradition of a proud organisation.”
Garda Representative Association president Michael O’Boyce said the report was "an appalling indictment on some of our members".
Speaking on Newstalk radio today, he said: "It’s an awful slap in the face to the majority of guards who go out and do their job to the best of their ability to have it now confirmed that some of our colleagues have let us down and let us down very badly.”
Mr O'Boyce said, however, he believed there had been a change in the culture of the force.
"We have moved on an awful long way in the last ten years. Interviews are now being video recorded, something the GRA have been calling on for years, and we welcome that. But one shouldn’t forget, and while I haven’t seen the report, I believe Judge Morris has commented on the fact that but for some of my members, who stood up and said, this is what happened, we wouldn’t have gotten to the truth of it at all."
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties said the latest revelations from the tribunal “highlight the need for further human rights based reforms”.
ICCL director Mark Kelly called for the introduction of a human rights monitoring framework in the Garda, together with “human rights-proofing of policy and practice, and a comprehensive review of training”.
“This should cover not only the specific changes in Garda questioning and covert surveillance practices identified by Judge Morris, but the whole range of Garda practices which engage human rights including arrest, detention, searching and the use of force.”
Mr Kelly said “robustly embracing these changes will go a long way towards restoring the tarnished reputation and morale of An Garda Síochána”.
