Detention in Garda station was lawful, Supreme Court rules

The Supreme Court has ruled a man was lawfully detained in a Garda station after his arrest for a drug search.

In an application without prejudice to the man’s acquittal, the DPP had asked the court to rule whether the trial judge had correctly decided the detention was unlawful.

The man was arrested travelling in a car with three others in Carrick-on-Suir on Christmas Eve, 2007. A rucksack beside him contained six bars of cannabis resin.

The trial judge had ruled a statement given by the man was inadmissible because there was a change of shifts between two Garda members in charge at the station and the officer taking over did not satisfy himself the continuation of the detention was necessary. As a result, he was acquitted.

The DPP then asked the Supreme Court to decide whether section 4(2) of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 required a relieving member in charge to consider whether there were reasonable grounds for both the original detention decision and the continued detention beyond 2pm.

By a four-to-one majority, the Supreme Court said no event occurred during the detention that changed the original reason for the detention.