High levels of public compliance as public adheres to health guidelines
In supporting the Covid-19 public health guidelines, An Garda Síochána has adopted a graduated policing response based on its tradition of policing by consent. This has seen members of An Garda Síochána engage, educate, encourage and, as a last resort, enforce. Gardaí continue to interact with the public on a daily basis with the vast majority adhering to the public health guidelines.
In what continues to be a small minority of cases across the country, despite receiving a number of warnings, some individuals were still not willing to take steps to comply with the public health guidelines and the regulations were used under the Health Act 1947- Section 31A- Temporary Restrictions (Covid 19) Regulations 2020.
From April 8th,which was when the regulations came into effect until June 6th inclusive, Gardaí have invoked the regulations 302 times out of more than a million interactions with the public. These include both arrests and incidents without arrest where name and address details were taken for consultation with the DPP on the decision to issue charges. Arrest remains a last resort. Of the 302 incidents, two were as a result of an instruction from a relevant medical professional as per the Act.
As per Garda policy in relation to the regulations, in all cases where arrests were made under the regulations, members of An Garda Síochána must consult with the Director of Public Prosecutions on the decision to charge.
To date, in 82 of these incidents a charge or summons has issued. Most incidents involve a single individual but some have resulted in charges against multiple people. To date, in 14 of the 302 incidents the DPP directed no charge. The remainder continue to be under criminal investigation.
In addition, pre-existing enforcement powers were used in 2,018 incidents where other offences were disclosed in the course of Covid-19 operations. These range from incidents such as drink driving or disqualified drivers detected at checkpoints, to drugs and weapons seizures, to public order offences. The number of incidents involving other suspected crimes continues to far exceed the number of cases involving only breaches of Government restrictions.
Commissioner Drew Harris said, "There has been very good compliance with the public health guidelines. As we enter Phase 2, it is important that we all continue to play our part in reducing the spreading of Covid-19 by staying local, not making unnecessary journeys, and maintaining social distancing. At the outset of the Covid-19 situation, I said that An Garda Síochána will continue to operate as a community-based policing service with a focus on protecting the vulnerable. This approach will not change during this phase.”
From April 8th until June 6th inclusive, there were 93 incidents of spitting and/or coughing against members of An Garda Síochána. Members of An Garda Síochána had to use anti-spit guards 70 times.
"While the rate is reducing, Gardaí continue to be subjected to despicable spitting and coughing attacks. This remains a serious concern for the organisation. These are a significant health and safety risk to our members in the current environment. We must protect them from such attacks,” said Commissioner Harris.
"This includes having the option of using anti-spit guards in very limited circumstances. We have made it clear these anti-spit guards are only to be used as last resort and in line with the Garda Decision Making Model, which includes at its centre human rights and our Code of Ethics.”
Anti-spit guards provide an additional tactical option to be considered by a Garda, as a last resort in a continuum of graduated response, in circumstances where ‘there is clear evidence of spitting now or where a member believes there is a clear and tangible threat of spitting posed by the subject’.
The Garda policy and use of anti-spit guards will be reviewed by An Garda Síochána in September 2020. From March 12th to June 6th, the Garda National Vetting Bureau (GNVB) has processed 30,403 vetting applications for Covid-related roles. This includes applications across medical and healthcare roles, and voluntary groups. GNVB has been fully up-to-date throughout 2020 with all vetting applications with a current turnaround time for vetting applications of one day.