GSOC’s Simon O’Brien survived storms to depart on own terms

A very public clash with outgoing GSOC chairman Simon O'Brien last February began a short and brutish period for then Garda commissioner Martin Callinan and then minister for justice Alan Shatter.

Just three months later, Callinan had retired and Shatter was warming the backbenches. O'Brien on the other hand was being publicly supported by new Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald, who was pledging to strengthen the GSOC's hand for dealing with the Garda.

He resisted calls from some Garda staff bodies to resign. Now that the dust has settled, O'Brien has landed a bigger job in the UK. He will relocate home to England to be with his wife and children and, on the face of it, has departed the Irish stage very much on his own terms.

After a career in the London Met that began in 1978, in March 2010 he became deputy chief inspector of the Garda Inspectorate, which advises on Garda reform. In December 2011 he became the third chairman of the GSOC.

It was 18 months later that the commission first came to public attention in a significant way. In May 2013 it concluded its longest investigation by conceding it had come to nothing. It rounded on the Garda culture it said had deliberately frustrated the inquiry.

Boylan investigation

It had investigated allegations that drug dealer

Kieran Boylan

, while working as a Garda informer, had serious drugs charges dropped and that he dealt drugs with Garda knowledge.

The GSOC alleged gardaí had “withheld” evidence from it. It complained gardaí had simply refused to comply with requests to supply information and evidence and that it was hampered by not having access to the Garda’s computerised Pulse database, which has since been granted.

Just nine months later the bugging controversy broke, and the decision by GSOC not to bring its initial concerns over bugging to Mr Shatter and the Garda when the security sweep was conducted was seen as very controversial when the story broke publicly.

With O’Brien’s departure, many in the force believe the Garda and the commission have an opportunity to reset their relationship.