A Co. Tipperary man, named as Mr John Doyle, aged 49 years, was convicted of two counts of rape and four counts of sexual assault; following a Central Criminal Court trial, latter held in Co. Wexford, last November, 2023.
The offences are understood to have taken place in the family home, situated at Littleton, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, between the years 2006 and 2017. The court heard today that Mr Doyle’s three victims; his two daughters and his niece, have all waived their right to anonymity, in order that he be publicly named.
Mr Doyle has denied any wrongdoing and maintains his innocence.
On imposing his sentence, Ms Justice Siobhan Lankford presiding described Mr Doyle’s offences as “a significant breach of trust of the gravest kind”.
Ms Justice Lankford imposed concurrent sentences of 12 years on the rape counts, with the final one-year suspended on strict conditions. She backdated the sentences to November 17th last, while he was held in custody, and directed him to remain away from his three victims for five years, after his release from prison.
Ms Justice Lankford also placed Mr Doyle under the supervision of the Probation Services, for this same five year period, to aid his rehabilitation.
Both of Mr Doyle’s daughters claimed that he threatened to kill himself, if they, the victims told anyone what had happened. There was also a suggestion that they would be offered money, to ensure that they remained silent on the matter.
Mr Doyle also stood accused of separately sexually assaulted his then 14-year-old niece, while she was babysitting for an aunt, latter who lived next door to Mr Doyle’s private residence.
The Court heard that Mr Doyle, a father of seven, has previously four convictions for road traffic offences.
Gardaí are seeking your help after a man, understood to be aged in his forties, was hospitalised, following a serious assault on the roadway outside Greenane Drive, in Tipperary town, Co. Tipperary.
The assault is understood to have taken place in the early hours of this morning (at around 2:00am), leaving the victim, in a serious but stable condition in University Hospital Limerick.
Following enquiries by investigating Gardaí, two men have since been arrested and remain currently in Garda custody at Garda stations in County Tipperary; detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
Gardaí are appealing to anyone who was in the vicinity of Greenane Drive, Tipperary town between the hours of 1:30am and 3:00am, and who may have information in relation to the incident, to contact them.
Any person with such information, including road users or pedestrians, and who may have dash or other camera footage, to immediately contact investigating Gardaí at Tipperary Garda Station, Tel. No. 062 80670, the Garda Confidential Line Tel.No. 1800 666 111, or indeed any Garda Station.
Minister for Justice Mrs Heleen McEntee has welcomed the news that over 6,300 people have applied to join An Garda Síochána force, under the most recent recruitment campaign.
According to statistics released today, by An Garda Síochána, they received 6381 applications in their recruitment competition, which closed last Friday (February 8th, 2024).
Welcoming the news this morning, Minister McEntee stated, “The response to the latest Garda recruitment campaign has been very strong. I am delighted to see over 6,300 apply to become Gardaí – this is a significant increase on the 5,000 people who applied last year. I am glad to see that so many people want to join An Garda Siochana and I am particularly pleased at the strong response from people aged between 35 and 50. Well over a third of the applications were in that age group. I have always said that nothing is off the table when it comes to recruitment. We have increased the training allowance and increased the age of entry from 35 to 50. I am determined that An Garda Síochána grows to 15,000 members and beyond. So to all those who have applied, good luck with the interviews and assessments, and all the very best on your path to a job well worth doing”.
This competition comes only ten months since the last Garda recruitment campaign, which attracted approximately 5,000 applications.
Minister McEntee is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime. An Garda Síochána have been allocated a budget of €2.35 billion to An Garda Síochána, a 25% increase since 2020. This funding will continue to allow for the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff this year, as well as ensuring Gardaí have the equipment, technology, facilities and fleet they need to carry out their vital work.
GSOC to be reconstituted as Fiosrú headed by a Police Ombudsman and supported by a Deputy Police Ombudsman and CEO.
Fiosrú ‘s revised processes and procedures to increase efficiencies in resolution of complaints about An Garda Síochána.
The Minister for Justice, Mrs Helen McEntee TD has today launched a recruitment competition to appoint a Police Ombudsman, in accordance with the Policing, Security and the Community Safety Act 2024. The competition will be conducted by the Public Appointments Service and the link to the competition can be found HERE. As provided for in the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) will be reconstituted as ‘Fiosrú’(Name translated from Irish to English ‘Inquiry’), to on commencement of the Act, later this year. The current three Commissioner model will be replaced by a single head of the organisation, the Police Ombudsman, supported by a Deputy Police Ombudsman and a Chief Executive Officer. GSOC has approximately 160 employees, at present, and has been provided with a budget of €19.6million for 2024, which is a 17% increase on the 2023 budget.
Speaking about the new role, Minister McEntee said, “The position of Police Ombudsman in Fiosrú is critical to maintaining public confidence in An Garda Síochána into the future. It is a very important role which will require both dynamic leadership and the ability to manage change. The successful candidate will be required to guide a reorganised corporate body through a significant change in structure and expansion in remit, leading the organisation to achieve the very highest standards of service delivery, respectful of the rights of complainants and members of An Garda Síochána.”
Referring to the fact that the Act also provides for comprehensive reform of the current GSOC system, the Minister continued: “The establishment of Fiosrú will build on the vital work carried out by GSOC since its establishment in 2007. Its development has been informed by the Commission on the Future of Policing’s recommendations on how an enhanced service can be provided. This is a pivotal time for policing reform in Ireland, with a suite of significant reform measures being implemented which will deliver longstanding benefits for the delivery of policing in Ireland.”
Under the Act, the independence, organisation, and governance of GSOC is addressed, with the new body, Fiosrú, expanding its remit and overhauling its processes and procedures. The changes will ensure that all complaints, other than an agreed list of service level complaints, will be investigated by Fiosrú. This will result in more independent assessment of allegations of Garda wrong-doing, including those that are identified other than by way of complaints from members of the public. Overall, the changes will greatly strengthen the existing mechanisms for Garda accountability, enhance transparency and improve efficiency of the complaints process. As was the case with GSOC, the Police Ombudsman, subject to the provisions of the Act, will be independent in the performance of his or her functions.
Note: The closing date for applications is 3:00pm, on Thursday, February 29th, 2024.
Statement from the Minister for Justice on publication of a ‘Request for Tender’ for Body Worn Cameras by An Garda Síochána.
Minister for Justice Mrs Helen McEntee has stated, “The government is committed to ensuring An Garda Síochána have the resources, the equipment and the technology necessary to build stronger, safer communities. This includes ensuring that Gardaí have body worn cameras, which has been a priority of mine for some time. This Request for Tender for the procurement of Body Worn Cameras (BWC) represents another important step forward in our fight against crime. Body cameras will be an important tool in An Garda Síochána’s armour as they fight crime, and the Recording Devices Bill, which I brought through the Houses last year, laid the groundwork for this announcement. Procuring cameras for these pilots now means that before the Summer there will be cameras on Gardaí in Limerick and Waterford, as well as two areas of Dublin City, ahead of a nation-wide roll-out. These trials will give Gardaí a chance to understand fully what the cameras can offer, and also allow the public to provide feedback, before we roll them out across the full organisation. The cameras will be small, lightweight, and visible and based on the experiences of other police services internationally, they will enhance accountability, reduce challenges around arrests and reduce complaints of Garda misconduct”.
Mrs McEntee continued, “We also expect they will save time in court preparation and appearances, lower costs for investigations and court appearances and improve An Garda Síochána’s ability to collect evidence for trial. All footage recorded by the cameras will be deleted after an agreed time period if not required as evidence. Most importantly, body worn cameras will better protect victims and improve safety for Gardaí”.
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