06 Nov SIGNIFICANT LEGAL CHALLENGE TO GARDA COMPLAINTS PROCESS
KRW LAW is instructed by Raymond Quinn, a resident of County Donegal, who today has been granted leave to have decisions of GSOC subject to independent review by the judiciary.
In an application for leave to apply for Judicial Review before the High Cour in Dublin, Raymond Quinn was successful in persuading the court that there was an arguable case to have decisions of GSOC subject to independent judicial scrutiny.
Raymond Quinn, a former compliance officer with a New York securities firm and now retired and living in County Donegal, made a complaint to the Garda Siochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) regarding a Garda investigation into a fraud in which he was victim.
GSOC admitted in pre-action correspondence with Mr Quinn that “Due to a lack of personnel and resources, GSOC has been, and continues to be, unable to investigate all complaints of alleged breaches of garda discipline regulations it receives each year … Until this position changes, complaints such as yours will have to be returned to the gardai for investigative action.”
For Mr Quinn this means that his complaint cannot be investigate effectively or independently and raises serious questions regarding the role of GSOC in is oversight of the Garda. The lack of independence by way of GSOC returning complaints to the Garda is conflict of interest which Mr Quinn argues must be subject to the scrutiny of the courts.
Today, the High Court granted Mr Quinn leave in his application for Judicial Review.
The next hearing is set for 19 November 2024.
Kevin Winters of KRW said:
“Independent oversight of a national police force is an important mechanism to ensure accountability and transparency. It is a check and balance system which secures pubic confidence in the police force that serves the people.
This decision of the High Court to enable independent legal scrutiny of the decisions made by GSOC regarding Mr Quinn’s complaint against the Garda is welcome.
There is matter of resources provided to GSOC by central government but as important, if not more so, the matter of independence and conflict of interest.
Important statutory institutions representing the power and authority of the state in protecting the Rule of Law cannot be allowed to escape the oversight of the independent judiciary when mechanism fail to be fit for purpose.”
Mr. Quinn was represented by Counsel Patricia Brazil SC and Ruaidhri Giblin BL.