Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 17 July 2014
583. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if she considers the act of deliberately ramming a Garda vehicle to be serious enough to warrant its own legislative response; if she is concerned with the figures pertaining to such instances; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32354/14]
View answerI can assure the Deputy that I consider the deliberate ramming of a Garda vehicle to be a very serious matter and am satisfied that there is already a range of robust road safety and other legislative enforcement provisions available to the Garda authorities in such circumstances. All incidents of this nature are, of course, subject to full and determined investigation by An Garda Síochána. That being said, I am having the Deputy's suggestion in relation to legislation in this area examined and I will communicate further with Deputy in this regard.
In relation to the existing legislation, the Road Traffic Act 1961 (as amended) provides for the offence of driving without reasonable consideration, careless driving and dangerous driving. Section 13 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997 also provides for the offence of intentional or reckless conduct which creates a substantial risk of death or serious harm, while section 2 of the Criminal Damage Act, 1991 provides for the offence of damage to the property of another person. Furthermore, section 19 of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act, 1994 (as amended) provides for the offence of assault or obstruction of a member of An Garda Síochána.
