Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

——I would wonder whether the local detective was trying to keep the guy before the court behind bars to teach him a good lesson for not making a voluntary statement, or something like that. I would wonder whether that was what was going on before me. In such circumstances, I would wonder there was a grudge match between two people with differing opinions about the facts of the relevant case. I might also wonder whether it was a case of the State, through a senior officer of the police force, coming to court to offer the senior corporate opinion of the Garda on the issue on a serious basis. That is what it is all about.

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