Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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956. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality to provide details of categories (details supplied) in relation to the number of persons who have died in Garda custody, including but not limited to deaths in Garda stations, immigration detention centres and other spaces managed by An Garda Síochána between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2022, in tabular form. [12934/24]

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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957. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality to provide details of categories (details supplied) of the number of persons who have died following contact with by An Garda Síochána between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2022, in tabular form. [12935/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 956 and 957 together.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) is the independent statutory body established under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended) to investigate complaints against members of An Garda Síochána. As Minister, I have no role in the investigative functions of GSOC.

Under subsection 102(1) of the Act, the Garda Commissioner shall refer to the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission any matter that appears to the Garda Commissioner to indicate that the conduct of a member of An Garda Síochána may have resulted in the death of, or serious harm to, a person. Under subsection 102(2) of the Act, the Ombudsman Commission shall ensure that any matter referred to the Commission under subsection (1) is investigated.

It should be noted that An Garda Síochána must determine if the threshold has been reached to refer an incident to GSOC under Section 102. This determination is an operational matter for the Commissioner and neither I, as Minister, nor GSOC has any role in this independent decision making process.

I am informed that it has been the practice of GSOC in its annual reporting to provide overviews of the circumstances that led to any Section 102 referrals in a given reporting year, including the proportion of referrals that arose from deaths. However, until their 2021 Annual Report, a breakdown of the circumstances of those deaths had not, as a matter of course, been disaggregated in these annual reports.

The table below shows the figures for incidents that were referred to GSOC which resulted in death either in or after Garda custody (Section 102 referrals), and has been compiled using the published figures in GSOC's annual reports to date.

It should be noted that referrals to GSOC under section 102 may involve more than one fatality in an incident, for instance, in a road traffic collision that results in the death of two or more persons.

As noted above, GSOC’s 2022 Annual Report provides a disaggregation of the kinds of circumstances that give rise to Section 102 referrals, including where this was the result of a death in custody. This breakdown is provided in the table below for reference.

*Deaths in Garda Custody includes persons who subsequently passed away in hospital.

Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein)
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958. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 1088 of 17 January 2024, if she has received the necessary information from the Garda authorities to have this PQ answered. [12965/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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This government is committed to combatting all forms of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence and to ensuring that An Garda Síochána is properly resourced to provide support to victims.

As the deputy is aware, under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána.

An Garda Síochána have informed me of the following:

Domestic abuse investigations come within the remit of each Superintendent for Community Engagement (where the Operating Model is implemented) or District Officer in divisions yet to implement the Operating Model.

Domestic Abuse Coordinator Teams (DACT) in each Community engagement area/district in the Dublin Metropolitan Region (DMR) are responsible for examining all cases where there is a recidivist element of domestic abuse or where domestic abuse is indicated as a motivating factor in a recorded incident.

All cases are assessed, evaluated and if deemed prudent, case managers are appointed to maintain additional contact with the injured party (or parties). Advices are provided in respect of civil orders that are available, together with the details of Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) operating within that area of concern that may be in a position to provide the victim with relevant support.

Each Detective Superintendent in the DMR convenes regular case conferences where DACT cases form the subject of discussion. The meetings provide an opportunity to establish what, if any, additional policing measures, supports and services are required to further support the victim(s). These case conferences are attended by DACT coordinators for each District and the local District Officer.

Cases are only closed on the direction of the District Officer. It should be noted that DACT is provided in addition to the routine supports provided to victims of crime. The role of a Domestic Abuse Coordinator includes (in no particular order) but is not limited to the following:

• Liaising with victims of domestic abuse identified as being at high risk of further domestic abuse;
• Liaising with suspect(s) of domestic abuse who have been identified as being at high risk of further offending, similar to case management of offenders;
• Liaising with local and national non-governmental agencies;
• Engaging with support services, refuges, Women’s Aid, Sonas, Saoirse etc;
• Liaising with Tusla, HSE, the Courts Service, the Probation Services and the Prison Service; and
• Attending relevant training seminars and presentations.

Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein)
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959. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 373 of 7 February 2024, if she has received the necessary information from the Garda authorities to have this PQ answered. [12967/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I refer to Parliamentary Question No. 373 of 7 February 2024 where the Deputy sought the amount spent by An Garda Síochána on hiring out an external jewellery valuation service in 2023 and to date in 2024.

As the Deputy will be aware, in accordance with the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended), the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána, including all operational policing matters. As Minister, I have no role in these matters, nor can I direct the Commissioner with regard to them.

The table below, provided to me by the Garda authorities, shows the amount spent on hiring external jewellery valuation services to carry out work on its behalf in 2023 and to-date in 2024.