A TRIAL of four Gardaí and a retired Garda Superintendent accused of unlawfully intervening in potential or pending fixed charge penalty notice (FCPN) prosecutions, heard this Tuesday (November 18) that Gardaí in senior positions have the power to cancel FCPNs in certain circumstances.
The five accused have pleaded not guilty before Limerick Circuit Criminal Court to a total of 39 offences of “engaging in conduct tending and intending to pervert the course of justice contrary to common law” arising out of an investigation by members of the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (GNBCI).
The accused are retired Superintendent Edmund ‘Eamon’ O’Neill; serving Sergeants Michelle Leahy and Anne-Marie Hassett; Garda Tom McGlinchey and Garda Colm Geary, all stationed within Limerick and Clare Garda Divisions.
An FCPN is a notice of an alleged offence and not proof of an offence, it was agreed by all parties in court.
Prosecution witness Sergeant Kevin McCahey, who held a senior supervisor role at the FCPN Enforcement Unit in Thurles, County Tipperary, gave evidence of providing information on FCPNs issued to motorists on foot of a request from the GNBCI.
Under cross examination by Felix McEnroy, senior counsel for Eamon O’Neill, Sergeant McCahey agreed he had never not followed instructions given to him as part of a Garda investigation.
He agreed he always considered such instructions to be “proper instructions” and did not consider “anything untoward” in the request, nor did he challenge it.
Sergeant McCahey replied “correct and right” when it was put to him by Vincent Heneghan, senior counsel for Garda Colm Geary, that “you were doing what you were told to do”.
Sergeant McCahey agreed with James O’Mahony, senior counsel for Sergeant Anne Marie Hassett, that it was “not unusual” for people to approach their local Garda and seek advice on what “to do” after receiving an FCPN.
Sergeant McCahey said members of the public could also contact the FCPN cancelling authority and query it.
Senior prosecution counsel, Carol Hanahoe, in a re-examination of Sergeant McCahey, asked what he would do if asked to deal with a FCPN query in respect of someone he knew personally.
He told Mr Hanahoe: “I’d give it to a colleague to investigate.”
When asked by Mr Hanahoe why he would do this, Sergeant McCahey replied: “A perceived conflict of interest.”
Mr Hanahoe asked Sergeant McCahey: “What would you do if you had improper instructions?”
“If somebody asked me to do something untoward, I wouldn’t do it. I took an oath to do my duty without fear or favour, malice, or ill will,” Sergeant McCahey replied.
Asked by Mr Hanahoe what he would do in the event of a superior officer asking him to “alter” an FCPN, Sergeant McCahy replied: “I wouldn’t do it.”
The court heard members of the GNBCI obtained and executed search warrants to seize mobile phones at the homes of a number of individuals.
Superintendent Blaithin Moran, Garda Roads Policing Bureau, told the court that twice weekly she did work out of the FCPN Cancelling Authority in Thurles, where, on occasion, she had legitimately cancelled FCPNs after physically assessing appeals.
Superintendent Moran said FCPNs for offences such as speeding; non-wearing of a seatbelt; using a mobile phone while driving; and driving without insurance or a licence, as examples, may be cancelled in exceptional circumstances.
She said cancellations may be considered, for example, in the case of a medical professional responding an emergency medical situation, or in the case of a sudden death. However, she said, travelling to a medical appointment or travelling to a funeral would not be considered as valid reasons to cancel.
The trial centres around motorists allegedly asking Gardaí to intervene in potential or pending road traffic prosecutions.
Superintendent Moran said Gardaí were able to employ discretion when dealing with members of the public “on a case by case basis. We are a community police force.”
The trial, before Judge Roderick Maguire, and a jury of eight men and four women, continues this week and is expected to last up to Christmas.