City sheriff hands in badge after 17 years

ONE OF only four “full” sheriffs in the State has hung up his spurs and is riding into the sunset.

Brendan Walsh retired as the sheriff of Dublin city at midnight after 17 years in the job.

Under the Court Officers Act 1945, Mr Walsh must vacate the office of sheriff when he turns 70, a milestone he passes today.

John Fitzpatrick, the Dublin county sheriff, will fill Mr Walsh’s boots on an acting basis until a permanent successor is found. The Department of Justice will hold a public recruitment process to find a new sheriff for the city.

There are only four full-time sheriffs – one each for Dublin city and county and one each for Cork city and county. They collect civil and tax debts and act as returning officers, organising elections and referendums.

Outside of Dublin and Cork, there are only part-time tax sheriffs. Elections and referendums are managed by county registrars.

A practising solicitor from 1965 until two years ago, Mr Walsh managed six constituencies in Dublin in the various elections.

He became sheriff on August 1st, 1995, ahead of the divorce referendum that November.

“It was a very close-run thing,” he recalled. “I was the last six constituencies in.”

He was also sheriff during the hard-fought duel between PD TD Michael McDowell and Green Party candidate John Gormley in the 1997 general election, when Mr Gormley emerged victorious after a week-long recount.

As for enforcing court orders, Mr Walsh’s best-known seizures were a wine collection from rogue solicitor Michael Lynn and a BMW car that was eventually handed over voluntarily by developer Paddy Kelly.

As the city’s sheriff, he always acted “firm but fair”, he said.