A colleague was adamant that unless the Gardai have a valid reason to stop a specific person and search them then they cannot do so, others disagreed.
The European judges said the power to search a person's clothing and belongings in public included an element of humiliation and embarrassment which was a clear interference with the right to privacy
21.—(1) If it appears to a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of superintendent that it is necessary in the interests of safety or for the purpose of preserving order to restrict the access of persons to a place where an event is taking or is about to take place which attracts, or is likely to attract, a large assembly of persons (in this Part referred to as the “event”), he may authorise any member of the Garda Síochána to erect or cause to be erected a barrier or a series of barriers on any road, street, lane, alley or other means of access to such a place in a position not more than one mile therefrom for the purpose of regulating the access of persons or vehicles thereto.
22.—(1) Where in relation to an event—the member may exercise any one or more of the following powers—(I) search or cause to be searched that person or any vehicle in or on which he may be in order to ascertain whether he has with him any such liquor, container or other article,
you could fear loseing your civel liberties for a start!As the phrase goes: if you've done nothing wrong, then you've nothing to fear...
The Gardai have no rights whatsoever to stop and search anyone unless they have reasonable suspicion that you have committed an offence.
Ok, I know this thread is a few months old but here goes... could you define reasonable suspicion?
taken from [broken link removed]When can a Garda search me?
If a Garda has a reasonable suspicion that
you have committed an offence, he or she
has various powers that allow him or her
to search you without your consent and
before you have actually been arrested.
Reasonable Cause
At common law an arrest could take place on the basis of a reasonable suspicion on the part of the arresting Garda that a person had committed a felony. There are other powers of arrest which allow an arrest to take place on the basis of “reasonable cause” or as in traffic offences when a Garda is “of opinion” that a particular state of affairs exists. Indeed, most arrests now occur under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Law Act, 1997 on the basis that the arresting Garda has reasonable cause to believe a person to be guilty of an offence.
Reasonable suspicion/cause therefore is a lower standard than a prima facie case. Reasonable suspicion can take account of matters which are not admissible in evidence such as hearsay. However, “mere suspicion” would not be sufficient.
The reasonable suspicion upon which an arrest is based should be one that is personal to the arresting Garda: Walsh v Fennessy [2005] 3 I. R. 516. The fact that an order is given to a Garda by a superior officer to carry out an arrest would not of itself give rise to sufficient suspicion to justify an arrest. It could be taken into account in determining whether the arresting Garda had grounds for a reasonable suspicion but there has to be some element other than a bare order to carry out the arrest.
Hi
Im a young man under the age of 20 and for the past 4 to 5 years I have been searched for no apparent reason. I don't do drugs and I don't drink on the streets or cause any trouble yet it seems if I am to walk in town or walk around my area I always seem to be stopped and searched and for no apparent reason. I have said this to some of the Gardai that have stopped me and they just laughed and said that it is within their rights to search me. I find this very demoralising and embarrassing to be just stopped on a street and searched. in one instance the guard actually got out of a car and ran after me while i was walking down the road. is their anything i could do about this as it is really making me angry ?
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