Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.
Mick Wallace claims Gardai involved in drugs trade - http://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/mick-wallace-claims-garda%C3%AD-involved-in-drugs-trade-1.2034029
âThe claims include allegations that a senior garda in the Midlands supplied drugs for distribution to his girlfriend; that gardaĂ supervised the removal of drugs from boats and that gardaĂ have tasked drug dealers with selling seized drugs.â
How did that recording of prisoners phone calls thing pan out?
Bad news for Deputy Shatter this morning in the High Court.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0520/702462-alan-shatter-sean-guerin/
Former minister for justice Alan Shatter has lost his challenge to the report by senior counsel SeĂĄn Guerin into his handling of claims by garda whistleblower Maurice McCabe.
Mr Shatter wanted to quash some of the findings of the report, published in May last year.
He resigned the day after the publication.
Mr Shatter claimed he had been given no opportunity to respond to criticisms and adverse conclusions made against him.
He claimed there had been an absence of fair procedures on the part of Mr Guerin.
Mr Shatter said Mr Guerin should have interviewed him before reaching conclusions on a range of issues.
But Mr Justice Seamus Noonan ruled that the nature of the exercise undertaken by Mr Guerin was in relation to Mr Shatter, limited to a consideration of the documents of the department for the purposes of advising the Government, of which Mr Shatter was a member, if further action was needed.
He said Mr Guerin was required to express a view and he did so.
The judge said the report was in the nature of an expert opinion from an independent senior counsel obtained by the Government on foot of a contractual arrangement privately entered into.
The judge said he could not see how Mr Shatter as a member of the Government that decided to obtain and publish the report could complain about the consequences.
Mr Justice Noonan also said the principle focus of these proceedings following their commencement was an attempt by Mr Shatter to stop the Commission of Investigation investigating his role in relation to Sgt McCabeâs complaints.
That was now a fait accompli, he said, but he said Mr Shatter was still seeking to curtain the statutory investigation by undermining the conclusions on which he says it was based.
He said Mr Shatter was trying to mount a collateral attack on the commission. He said that could not be permitted.
Mr Justice Noonan dismissed Mr Shatterâs claim on all grounds.
Mr Shatter later said he would reflect on the judgment.
The judge said it was clear from even a cursory perusal of the report that Mr Guerinâs task was a mammoth undertaking to be completed in around eight weeks.
He said the time span given to Mr Guerin was a clear indication of the nature of the review required.
If Mr Guerin had to interview all the people identified as being involved in the events which Sergeant McCabe complained about, and give them the full range of fair procedures Mr Shatter said they should have received, then Mr Guerinâs report could have taken months if not years.
He said Mr Guerinâs report was intended as a preliminary exercise to assist the Government in determining if further steps should be taken.
He said Mr Shatter was suggesting Mr Guerin should have done what the Commission of Investigation is now doing.
The judge also found Mr Guerinâs conclusions were not findings of fact or final determinations of anything.
He said they could not be challenged by way of judicial review.
The judge said Mr Shatter complained extensively about damage to his reputation and his career as a result of the report but singularly failed to explain why the conclusions were wrong.
He said Mr Shatter was given fair procedures entirely appropriate for the nature of the review Mr Guerin was carrying out.
The judge also strongly criticised the former justice minister in relation to a number of other issues.
He said that in correspondence with the Ceann Comhairle of the DĂĄil in late 2014 and early 2015, Mr Shatterâs lawyers were making the case that including an examination of his role in the Commission of Investigationâs terms of reference would be unlawful and unconstitutional and any attempt to do so would be challenged legally.
But the judge said Mr Shatter did not initiate such proceedings.
He said no mention of this was made in his submissions in this case.
The judge said this was an extraordinary change of position, entirely unexplained.
He said it was very difficult to resist the conclusion that these proceedings were initiated by Mr Shatter to stop his role in the investigation of Sgt McCabeâs complaints being examined by the commission.
The judge said judicial review was a powerful weapon in the armoury of the court deployed to vindicate the constitutional rights of the citizen and protect them against unjust attack.
It did not, he said, exist to facilitate the adoption of strategies or tactical positions designed to achieve a different purpose and the court ought not permit its process to be used in this way.
Mr Shatter had originally accused Mr Guerin of objective bias.
He said Mr Guerin was a member of the Bar Councilâs Professional Practices Committee and he claimed that committee had publicly criticised the provisions of the Legal Services Bill and the approach taken in the bill to reforms which would affect the legal profession.
That committee did not make any such criticism of the bill.
Mr Justice Noonan said Mr Shatter had offered no apology or any expression of regret.
He said Mr Shatter withdrew the allegation four-and-a-half months after it had been made publicly and six weeks after it had been demonstrated to be entirely without foundation.
The judge said there was not the slightest attempt to explain how this very serious error was made by Mr Shatter.
The judge said this allegation was of the utmost gravity.
He said to have this allegation made very publicly by the former justice minister could hardly be more serious with all the implications it carried for Mr Guerinâs professional reputation and future career.
The judge said Mr Shatter had a duty to find out the full facts before swearing on oath that those facts were true.
He said Mr Shatterâs approach to this issue was entirely unacceptable.
The judge said it could not possibly be suggested by Mr Shatter that he was unaware his role in relation to Sgt McCabeâs complaints was to be examined by Mr Guerin, having regard to statements Mr Shatter had made in DĂĄil Ăireann.
He also said a claim by Mr Shatter that he bore no responsibility for correspondence addressed to his department but not specifically brought to his attention was extraordinary.
Indeed there is all crooked cunts up there,the guards that is
Funny that I was talking to Deputy Kenny only a fortnight ago and he never mentioned his concerns to me.
Granted there have been some odd decisions - but still Iâve found from anecdotal evidence that some of the Ballinamore/Ballyconnell divisional gardai are alright sorts.
I brought in a motor from the UK there a few years ago and was tipping merrily home from town on about day 10 when the squad car came roaring up behind me with the full Monty of lights etc. They read me the riot act - demanded VRT clearance - quoted some 3/day rule and informed me they were confiscating the motor. I nearly shit myself until they guffawingly informed me that a mate of mine had set me up. 
In Julioâs article, the disappearance of Pat Heeran is fairly tragic. Poor oulâ Pat was a troubled and troublesome soul whoâs met a bad end Iâd fear.
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Iâd say your well connected Boxty and likely to be at right end of any âdodgyâ Garda going onâs 
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No better man to âgrase a wheelâ Iâd say
I was sitting in the kitchen on my own of a dark November evening there a few years ago when the door got a short rap prior to the entry of the now retired local Garda. âI shot the land there Boxty - you were ahead of me it seemsâ was his opening comment.
âI did Johnâ was the best I could muster before proffering a warming glass which was warmly accepted.
What more could I say - the old pair were robbed about 20 years earlier and he had the guilty party apprehended in 2 days ( a local cunt). I was hardly going to ask him for his gun license seeing as he didnât ask for mine.
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Can you translate this post for urban people please, mate?
No problem palâŚNovember is pheasant shooting season and local Garda exercises his âoptionâ to encroach on each and everyoneâs lands for the purpose of feeding his family - they being starved of resources by the Commissioner.
Who am I to see the poor bastards family existing on hand-outs from the chipper in Carrick-on-Shannon.
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I see Paul Reynolds and his reporting on the whole matter are included in the terms of reference of the latest enquiry 
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Ooooft a Blueshirt breaking ranks here to put the boot into OâSullivan. Surely her position is untenable now.
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Why are you so desperate to see her go, pal?
I want to see someone with integrity in charge of the police.
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IF true this is GUBU
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Herself and Arlene didnât get to the top by being shrinking violets. Hard enough for wimmin to get to the top of most organisations but the DUP and GardaĂ? Not known to be bastions of equality. OâSullivan must have been up to all sorts to head that cesspit.