Abbeylara lessons not learnt - Gort man critical after being shot by Garda with live round

galway | crime and justice | other press

Tuesday October 10, 2006 08:34

by Paul O'Donnell

It beggars belief that another man is now fighting for his life after being shot by a Garda using a live rifle round at Gort, Co. Galway. Have they learnt nothing from their killing of John Carthy in Abbeylara, Co. Longford?

Yesterday a siege took place over several hours off Crowe Street in the County Galway town of Gort. A local man, who was allegedly in a disraught condition, barricaded himself into his home in the town after a domestic incident. It was stated that he was in position of two legally held shotguns.

Within a short time a force of 50 or more gardai, including the Garda Dog Unit, Garda Helicopter and Armed Response Unit arrived on the scene and surrounded the house. It is stated that a professional negotiator was brought in.

The stand-off continued for hours with apparently no contact with the man, until around 9.00pm last night when it was reported that the man had been "disabled" with the use of non-lethal bean-bag rounds. Later at a garda press conference it was said that the man had been "brought down" and was receiving hospital treatment for minor injuries.

Eyewitnesses at the scene told reporters that they had seen the man being put into an ambulance and bleeding heavily. Bean bag rounds do not pierce the skin and cannot cause internal bleeding. Then the truth, like this mans blood, began to trickle out.

It now emerges that the man was shot in the chest / shoulder area. Garda sources say that the bean bag rounds failed to disable him.

Now a senior garda has been appointed to carry out an internal inquiry (the gardai investigating themselves). No doubt the new head of the Garda inspectorate Kathleen O'Toole will also carry out an "investigation". Doubtless too she will exonerate the gardai. She is already on record as calling for all gardai to be armed. Who needs bean-bags, give them guns, is her message.

Who is going to believe any of these inquiries? They can have no credibility.

Will we have another tribunal, like the one into the death of John Carthy, which is hardly a few weeks printed and is already shelved?

Don't hold your breath.