Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 5 July 2018
160. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of persons who have reoffended while on bail in each of the past three years to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29995/18]
View answer162. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of persons before the courts who have absconded while on bail for more than one offence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29998/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 160 and 162 together.
As the Deputy will be aware, a decision to grant bail in a particular case is a matter for the presiding Judge, who is, subject only to the Constitution and the law, independent in the exercise of his or her judicial functions. There is also a constitutional presumption in favour of the grant of bail as, under Irish Law, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The Criminal Justice Act 2017 (changed from the Bail (Amendment) Bill 2016), which was enacted in June of this year, strengthens the operation of the bail system with the aim of making the law as effective as possible in protecting the public against crimes committed by persons on bail.
Under the Act, the Court will be required to have regard to persistent serious offending by an applicant for bail and the nature and seriousness of any danger presented by the grant of bail to a person charged with an offence that carries a penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment or more. The Court will also have the power, in certain cases, to hear evidence from the victim of an offence before a decision on bail is taken.
Where an accused person is granted bail, the Act will provide for stricter bail terms for repeat serious offenders, strengthen Garda powers to deal with breaches of bail, increase the use of curfews, and allow for the introduction of electronic tagging for those on bail in certain circumstances where requested by Gardaí.
I am advised by the Courts Service that figures can only be provided in respect of the number of bench warrants issued for persons who breached their bail and did not appear in Court. The figures cannot indicate if the person was on bail for more than one offence or if they had more than one active bail bond at the same time. The below table outlines the number of persons where bench warrants for breach of bail were issued between December 2017 and 30 June 2018. When reviewing the information, it is worth noting the following:
- If a person received more than one warrant the person only appears once on the report.
- A Bench Warrant may cover more than one offence.
- The report displays the number of bench warrants issued. Some may have been executed and some are still outstanding.
|
Date |
No. of Persons where bench warrants issued for breach of bail |
|
Jan–Dec 2017 |
9,332 |
|
Jan–30 June 2018 |
6,085 |
