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Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 15 Jun 1999

Vol. 506 No. 2

Written Answers. - Car Theft.

Emmet Stagg

Question:

68 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the extent of the joyriding problem in the Dublin metropolitan area; the percentage of Garda cars supplied with stinger devices; and if he will make these available for all Garda cars in order to combat this problem. [15387/99]

The offence of unauthorised taking of a vehicle, commonly referred to as joyriding, is a criminal offence under section 112 of the Road Traffic Acts, 1961, as amended. joyriding within the Dublin Metropolitan Area is an ongoing problem in some areas such as Tallaght, Ballyfermot, and Clondalkin, and can be sporadic in such areas as Darndale, Belcamp and Moatview.

I have been informed by the Garda authorities that where the problem exists a number of approaches are taken to tackle it. These include: education – the use of an anti joy-rider video produced in Ronanstown in connection with the GRAFT youth diversion programme, shown to school children; enlistment of parents in the community and community groups, for example, efforts are under way in the Tallaght area to establish a group similar to a group known as Mothers against joyriding who were of considerable assistance a few years ago in reducing incidents of joyriding; the establishment of an anti joyriding unit in the Tallaght area in response to an identified problem; development of policing strategies such as Operation Steering Wheel which is ongoing in the Coolock area; the introduction of special patrols in the Ballyfermot and Clondalkin areas, utilising four wheel drive vehicles, where this is necessary; deployment of the stinger device; and traffic calming measures implemented by the various Dublin local authorities where this is feasible.
I am informed by the Garda authorities that it is generally a hard core of youths who engage in this activity, many of whom are known to the gardaí, but with the assistance of onlookerssupporters it is often difficult to arrest them. There is a high degree of recidivism, with many youths being arrested on several occasions, and with a number of offenders being on temporary release at the time of arrest. As the prison building programme progresses, I propose to ensure that unplanned or unprogrammed releases do not take place for serious crimes such as joyriding . I am confident that this should impact on recidivism.
I have been assured by the Garda authorities that the strategies currently in place to combat joyriding are reviewed periodically and changes to tactics are made where necessary to ensure continued effectiveness.
I am further informed by the Garda authorities that the percentage of squad cars supplied with stinger devices is one stinger for 3.7 cars. The number of marked patrol cars in the Dublin Metropolitan Area is 185 at present. As the problem of joy riding is not common across the city not all Garda cars in the city are allocated a stinger device. However, I have been assured by the Garda authorities that the allocation of these devices is kept under review by Garda management.
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