Sir, Commissioner Culligan gave an excellent address (June 5th) to the Dublin Chamber of Commerce. During the course of his address he raised many different issues. The speech should be required reading for all politicians.
Even though Mr Culligan is shortly to retire, hem refrained from any criticism of Government he Department of Justice. Perhaps the prudence and discretion of a lifetime cannot be cast off so easily".
It is difficult to imagine how Commissioner Culligan could address the crime issue without referring to the problems of early release of prisoners because of lack of prison places. I can think of no action or inaction of the Governments for the past 10 years which must be having such an adverse effect on the morale of the Garda force and which must give encouragement to the criminal than the problem of early release. A great deal of the serious crime can be traced to the lack of punishment to fit the crime and to the fact that the courts and the Gardai have no influence on the release policy.
I hope that Commissioner Culligan and his colleagues are drawing the attention of the Minister and her Department repeatedly to this issue. It is the fundamental cause of much of recent crime. All other measures, which can be taken in relation to crime, fade into insignificance when compared with the simple importance of the State being able to ensure that criminals serve the custodial sentences to which the courts sentence them.
In the course of his address to the chamber, Commissioner Culligan referred to the difficulty posed to the Gardai by the view, which has gained credence in the media and obviously among our politicians of all parties, that crime is a symptom of deprivation, poverty or alienation.
This erroneous view has had a bad effect on Gardai morale and has led indirectly to the shameful policies of not providing adequate prison places for our criminals.
Undoubtedly, a great deal more should be done to eliminate deprivation, poverty and alienation. However, such actions will of themselves have little effect on the rate of crime. Criminals commit crime because they take a calculated risk that they will not be caught or if caught, will not be convicted. Now, a further calculation has emerged, if caught and convicted, how long of the sentence will be served?
Crime without the certain deterrent of punishment to fit the crime will continue to rise. Director General, RGDATA, Rock House, Main Street, Blackrock, Co Dublin.