Garda’s 'degrading' act on teen leads to community service on appeal

Fionnuala Walsh

A garda who left a teenage father "humiliated" on a Dublin city street by twice filling a cup with puddle water and pouring it over his tracksuit bottoms in an act of “very deliberate degradation” has had his two-month jail term replaced with community service on appeal.

Eoghan McGowan (29) was a serving garda member when he assaulted the 17-year-old boy, who was in the care of the State at the time. The victim reported that McGowan said “you’re p**sing yourself” as he carried out the assault.

McGowan has since apologised to the victim, whom the District Court Appeals Court was told had forgiven the defendant.

McGowan pleaded guilty in the District Court to assaulting the minor on January 9, 2023, at Granby Place, Dublin 1, contrary to section 2 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997. He was sentenced to four months in custody with two months suspended.

He lodged an appeal against his conviction, which was later changed to an appeal against the severity of his sentence only.

David Power, an investigating officer with Fiosru, told the District Court Appeals Court on Tuesday that Eoghan McGowan was a member of An Garda Siochana.

He said that the injured party was 17 years old at the time and was in the care of the State.

David Perry, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said that on the date in question, the injured party had been at the Rotunda Hospital with his partner, who was in labour. He said that she requested that he go to her house to collect some items. He said that the injured party left the hospital and walked to her home while speaking on the phone.

Mr Perry said that while walking on Granby Place, an unmarked Garda vehicle driven by McGowan pulled up beside the injured party. He said that there were four gardaí, including McGowan, in plain clothes in the car.

Mr Perry said that the injured party was approached by McGowan and another garda, but neither identified themselves as garda members.

He said that McGowan took the injured party’s phone, and the teen was searched. Mr Perry said that McGowan bent the teen’s leap cards and put them back into his coat pocket, rendering them unusable.

Mr Perry said that the teen’s phone was given back to him, and the gardaí walked back to the vehicle while the injured party started to pick up his belongings.

He said that at this stage, the injured party said that he called the gardaí a name that he couldn’t recall.

Mr Perry said that this caused the two other gardaí to come back, whereupon they grabbed and restrained the teen against the patrol vehicle. He said that McGowan remained in the car as the two other gardaí held the teenager in a “goose neck hold”.

The DPP counsel said that when the injured party was restrained, McGowan took a paper cup from inside the car, took up water from a puddle and poured the water onto the seat of the teen’s tracksuit bottoms.

Mr Perry said that McGowan repeated the action, filling up from the puddle again and emptying it again onto the seat of the teen's tracksuit bottoms.

He said that the injured party reported that McGowan was saying “you’re p**sing yourself”.

Mr Power confirmed to the judge that the gardaí had not identified themselves as garda members at any stage.

Mr Perry said that the injured party was released from the hold and that the gardaí then drove away.

CCTV of the incident was played to the court by the prosecution counsel.

Mr Power said that the injured party was very upset after the incident and remained on the phone the entire time. He said that the woman on the phone reported that she overheard what was happening.

He said that the matter was reported to GSOC the day after the incident.

Mr Perry said that the appellant proposed handing over €5,000 to the injured party as a token of remorse during the District Court proceedings, which was paid.

He said that two other male gardaí were prosecuted in the District Court in relation to the incident, but that ultimately these charges were dismissed.

In a victim impact statement, which was read out in court, the injured party said that the incident happened on the same day that his baby was born.

The injured party, who is now 19 years old, said that he fully cooperated with the gardaí and that he had nothing to hide. He said that they acted with “aggression” and with “spiteful actions”. The injured party said that they were “horrible in the way they treated me”.

He said in the statement that he made a comment to the gardaí in frustration. He said that McGowan had poured two cups of dirty water on him, and it looked like he had soiled himself.

The injured party said that the incident made him feel humiliated, angry and sad. He said that he was left on the streets “dirty and overwhelmed”. He said he felt embarrassed and angry at the gardai. He said he still has a fear of being stopped and assaulted again. He said that he was in fear of what they would do to him.

Keith Spencer BL, defence counsel for McGowan, said that no physical force was used in the initial search. Counsel put it to the witness that the injured party called the gardaí a name and that is why they acted the way they did, to which Mr Power agreed.

He said that his client did commit assault by filling the water and putting it on the teen, but counsel said it was not physical in nature.

Mr Spencer said that McGowan deeply regrets his conduct and had written a heartfelt apology letter at the time of the District Court hearing.

Counsel said that the injured party forgave the defendant for the offence. He said the injured party said that “he [McGowan] can’t be doing things like this”, but that they exchanged some pleasantries outside the courtroom that morning.

Mr Power said that McGowan remains suspended from An Garda Siochana as far as he was aware.

Mr Spencer told the judge that McGowan never had any disciplinary issues with An Garda Siochana throughout his career. He said that the area where the assault took place was a black spot in terms of drug dealing.

Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin said that there was clearly no lawful authority to search the injured party invoked by anybody. The judge also said that she is “quite familiar” with the area.

Mr Spencer said that the job of the gardai in that area was becoming “quite difficult” and this contributed to the stresses of the officers working there.

He said that his client graduated from Templemore in 2017, worked as a garda in Store Street and then moved to the drugs unit in 2022.

He said that his client’s actions were deeply regretted but that he was otherwise an impeccably behaved citizen and garda.

Mr Spencer said that this was an act his client wishes he could take back, and reminded the court that McGowan entered a guilty plea both in the District Court and the appeals court.

He said that this is his client’s first offence and that he should be spared a custodial sentence, submitting that there was “no risk” he would ever be before the courts again.

He said that the act was described as “childish” by the injured party, but it was still an assault by the application of water, and not a punch or any physical harm.

Judge Ní Chúlacháin said that this was a serious case aggravated by the fact that the injured party was “in fact a child, in the care of the State”.

She said that the act was “very deliberate degradation” by the defendant on the date of the birth of the victim's child. She said that the victim will always remember his humiliation on his child's birthday.

Judge Ní Chúlacháin said that McGowan was also in a position of trust in the community as a member of An Garda Síochána.

The judge said that there was significant mitigation on his behalf, considering his guilty plea and the fact that the injured party accepted his apology.

The judge said it is relevant that McGowan is a person of good character with no previous or pending issues and a low likelihood of ever reoffending. She said that he has suffered in that he has been suspended and may lose his livelihood entirely.

She said she was “very shocked” by the idea that a 17-year-old would be assaulted in this way.

The judge on Wednesday decided to impose 60 hours of community service on McGowan in lieu of four months' imprisonment. She also ordered that he is to pay a further €5,000 to the injured party, in addition to the €5,000 already paid.

She asked Mr Perry to convey a message to the injured party that she is happy to see he is doing well and wished him the best with his child.

*This copy is funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme