Mr McDowell knows he will have to tread carefully with the new CriminalJustice Bill, writes Carl O'Brien
Against a background of soaring public order offences and worrying increases in the number of gangland killings, the Minister for Justice's proposals to extend the Garda's powers of search and detention will doubtless be welcomed by rank-and-file gardaí.
Just a cursory look at Garda statistics throws up the image of a startlingly ineffective force struggling to cope with outdated investigative measures in relation to a whole host of offences.
Already this year criminal gangs have been behind at least 15 killings, the vast majority of which have not resulted in any charges. Garda figures also show there are around 117 public order offences before the courts every day, yet around half of these are struck out without penalty.
The Criminal Justice Bill (2003), published by the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, could help change that. Gardaí would be able to detain people for longer, issue search warrants, take DNA samples by force, and access a DNA database in any criminal investigation.
Some measures in the Bill are so reasonable that civil liberties campaigners would find it hard to object to them. These include giving the Director of Public Prosecutions greater powers to appeal the leniency of sentences handed down by the courts, and the taking and use of DNA samples for investigation.
However, with the shadow of Abbeylara and alleged Garda corruption in Donegal still hanging over the force, there is good reason to believe that some of the more sweeping measures should be counterbalanced by greater protection against abuse.
The proposal to increase the detention period for criminal suspects from 12 to 24 hours is a case in point. Research as close to home as Northern Ireland shows that the longer the detention period, the greater the potential for unnecessary use of force or brutality.
During this period, suspects will not be able to have a solicitor present, although they will be able to have access to a legal representative.
It all sounds a bit premature, however, given that long-promised plans to introduce video and audio taping into interview rooms in all Garda stations have still not materialised.
There are also big question marks over the shape of the planned Garda Inspectorate.
In fact, Mr McDowell's approach to the introduction of the criminal justice legislation bears many an uncanny resemblance to the carrot-and-stick approach adopted in 1984 when the then minister for justice, Mr Michael Noonan, introduced similar legislation. The stick to the carrot of increased Garda powers then was the Garda Complaints Board. This time around, it's the Garda Inspectorate.
But just as with the complaints board, there are serious doubts over how the inspectorate will operate and how effective it will be.
We still don't know who will staff it, what relationship it will have with retired members of the Garda Síochána, or what resources will be available to it.
The full scope of the inspectorate's investigative powers is still under consideration, as the matter is "complex and sensitive", according to Mr McDowell.
He says he wants to be sure the correct balance between the effectiveness of the inspectorate and the Garda had been struck
The approach to increasing the powers of detention also has the whiff of emergency legislation being introduced in the context of a normal piece of criminal law.
Garda powers to detain suspects in the investigation of serious drug-related crime for up to seven days were taken following the dramatic upsurge in gangland killings and drug-related crime several years ago.
The Offences Against the State Act, which provides for the detention of suspects for up to 72 hours, was also enacted at a similar time of national crisis.
Abbeylara and Donegal are not the end of the story. There are other allegations of Garda misconduct which haven't attracted as much attention.
A mind-boggling sum of €6 million has been paid to some 70 victims of Garda assault and wrongful arrest over the past five years. All but six of these never made it to court, so we will never know how serious the allegations were.
Of course, great work is carried out by members of the Garda and the majority of investigations and prosecutions are not tainted by any suggestion of impropriety.
But Prof Dermot Walsh of the University of Limerick, in his book The Irish Police, has warned against awarding the force unfettered powers.
"\ gardaí were allowed to think they were bigger than the law itself. Their self-perception was that they were the law, and as long as their activities were aimed at subversives and organised crime they would not be brought to account."
Additional power for the Garda will have to be carefully balanced with appropriate additional responsibilities. Mr McDowell knows he will have to tread carefully.
The Minister alluded to this yesterday when he said: "There is a great need to take into account the rights of the individual, while at the same time ensuring that those tasked with operating the criminal justice system, in particular the Garda Síochána, are given the necessary mechanisms to tackle serious crime."
Legislation providing for the new Garda Inspectorate will reveal if he is as committed in his attitude to giving extra powers as to holding the force to account.