Gardaí call for tasers to subdue radicals

Gardaí want to be issued with tasers to subdue religious extremists because the likelihood is ordinary units will have to deal with them first before armed backup arrives.

The Garda Representative Association (GRA), which represents 10,400 rank-and-file members of the force, is also calling for legislation to protect its members from attacks while off-duty and from trolling carried out by “sinister elements” who have hijacked anti-water charge protests.

GRA president Dermot O’Brien said gardaí were concerned about the potential for religious fundamentalists causing trouble in this country one day.

“We have to be conscious that we don’t live in a bubble and shouldn’t think we won’t experience something. Our [ordinary] members are likely to be first at the scene as the chances are that armed gardaí won’t,” the GRA president said.

“We have the asp [extendible baton] and pepper spray and firearms, but nothing in between. We need tasers to act as a deterrent,” Garda O’Brien said.

He said while he would ideally like to see all gardaí provided with tasers, initially at least, each station unit should be equipped with one. Garda O’Brien said the taser would be a less lethal form of subduing a potentially extremely dangerous individual as it emits a high voltage electric shock which temporarily disables a suspect.

Speaking at the start of the annual GRA conference in the Mount Wolseley Hotel, Tullow, Co Carlow, last night the GRA president said gardaí were regularly “being spat at, assaulted and verbally abused” by some elements at anti-water charge protests.

Even worse, he said, were occasions where they were being trolled on social media and money had even been offered online to get the names and addresses of gardaí policing such protests. “No other section of society has to live with that”, said Garda O’Brien who emphasised his members were only using reasonable force, which they were entitled to do, if peaceful protests turned ugly.

He said the offer of money for personal information about gardaí was under investigation and therefore wouldn’t comment any further on the issue.

The GRA president said 600 gardaí were injured in the line of duty last year, 46% of which were directly as result of assault.

“Members (of the force) are being targeted while they are out socialising. There is no specific legislation in place to deal with that. We want legislation introduced to deal with that,” he said.

He said leg restraints should become standard equipment to prevent prisoners kicking out.

GRA deputy general secretary John Healy said that gardaí were being unfairly penalised by new sick leave regulations which cap the amount of days they can take over a four-year period before their wages are cut.

He said the legislation was structured for public service office workers and didn’t take into account the daily possibility that gardaí would be injured during their duty, or suffer from inclement weather as most were forced to work outdoors in all types of conditions.

As a result Mr Healy said that many gardaí were afraid to take further time off, even for seriously needed operations, as they had to pay mortgages and feed their families.

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