In December 2014 the establishment of the commission of investigation into malpractice in An Garda Síochána was heralded by the government as a watershed moment for the treatment of whistleblowers. Mr Justice Kevin O’Higgins would investigate claims that 11 crimes, including serious assaults and sexual offences, had not been properly investigated by gardaí in the Cavan-Monaghan district. On May 15, 2015, there were fractious exchanges in the commission’s inquiry room in Smithfield, Dublin. Nóirín O’Sullivan’s legal team told the judge that they had been ordered by the then garda commissioner to test the credibility and motivation behind Sergeant Maurice McCabe’s allegations. While they might have argued that his accusations should have been rigorously tested the whistleblower had already been vindicated by a previous report.

Source: The Times November 23, 2017 00:00 UTC