Grace Lynch’s mother calls for stronger powers for gardaí in scrambler crackdown

Teenager Grace died when she was struck by a scrambler on January 25 near her home in Finglas in west Dublin. File picture

The mother of Grace Lynch has said she is not happy with the details of the proposed Grace’s Law to ban scramblers and is calling for gardaí to be given a second licence to enforce the law without repercussions.

Teenager Grace died when she was struck by a scrambler on January 25 near her home in Finglas in west Dublin. An 18-year-old man has been charged in connection with her death.

The Government has responded to the 16-year-old’s tragic death through the Oireachtas by banning scrambler bikes in public places. However, Grace’s mother, Siobhán Gifford Lynch, said the ban is not working on the ground and that gardaí need additional powers.

“It is bittersweet because the gardaí can’t do anything at the moment, a garda received a ban from driving for chasing a scrambler. So, this is not working already” she said. 

"We want gardaí to be given a second licence so they dont face the wrath of the law over chasing these lads on bikes.

“We talked to the Taoiseach Micheál Martin, but we are also pushing to meet the Minister for Justice to make this happen for the gardaí, and he won’t because there is a case before the courts.

"The gardaí have been contacting us too, for help and we have asked to meet the Commissioner too about this.

“We don’t want to meet Jim O’Callaghan and the Commissioner about the case in the courts, we want to meet them over this ban that we want it ironed out properly, it’s not about the case it’s about going forward with the ban properly.

“I need to speak to be able to help the gardaí, the gardaí are ringing me saying they can’t do their work properly when they don’t have the powers. I need to be able to have everyone on board to help me bring this through properly.

“I told the Taoiseach on Wednesday night; you’re not giving me what I need to here. We have no enforcement and we need the gardaí to be given a special licence to be able to do this work. All I am seeing now is a knee jerk reaction, and if that is all this is, then that is no good.”

Since July 2023, off-road scramblers have been illegal for use on public roads, and it has also been illegal to drive them dangerously anywhere, even on private land.

A court ruling this week saw Garda Seán Shields fined and banned from driving for two years for dangerous driving while in pursuit of two masked scrambler riders in Dublin in 2024. This has angered Grace's parents.

“If we can’t give gardaí a second licence or new powers to catch scramblers, then why are we doing this?”, said Grace's father Michael Lynch.

He added: “We want them to have a separate driving licence for this. If people on scramblers are driving dangerously, they have to be stopped because anyone in their path is a potential victim.

“The gardaí are asking us to speak to Ministers for them, they can be sacked fined or convicted at the moment for this work.

“We want a separate driving licence for the gardaí, and we have raised that with the Taoiseach and to indemnify them. They can’t do their job right now. Scramblers need to be stopped.

“It is all great giving Grace a law, but when there is nothing in it, it’s of no benefit. This is not a new law, but it is an unworkable law.

Grace’s parents said locals have been supportive, but they want scramblers “stamped out”.

“The bikes are still creeping back in, we are still seeing them all the time, but we want major fines for parents who allow their kids have these bikes. We want to see the parents fined, and not little fines, huge fines," said Ms Lynch.

While her husband said, “Stop their child benefit if you have to, but do something that will make parents buying them to think about what they are doing.

“The vendors also need to be checked and kids under 18 should not be allowed buy a scrambler."