THE West Cork garda division has the lowest percentage of arrest rates for domestic violence in the country, according to figures in a recent Garda Inspectorate report.
The report, which examined An Garda Síochána’s response to domestic abuse shows that in 2022 Cork West had the lowest arrest rate for domestic violence in the whole country at 21%, while neighbouring Kerry was slightly above it at 24%.
This is in sharp contrast to the other two Cork Garda divisions, with arrest rates for Cork North at 30%, and Cork city at 31%.
Figures also show the arrest rate for breaches of domestic violence orders in both Cork North and Cork city were 67% and 66% respectively, while Cork West was significantly lower at 55%.
‘It is important to note that not all offences have a power of arrest. In addition, the arrest rate can change over time due to arrests occurring on a different date from the incident date,’ the Inspectorate said.
Figures from a domestic abuse victim survey revealed that 57% of respondents were satisfied with the initial action taken by An Garda Síochána, while 50% would be likely to report an incident of domestic abuse to An Garda Síochána in the future.
The Inspectorate report also made a number of recommendations in relation to improvements that could be made to An Garda Síochána’s approaches to tackling domestic abuse, including that An Garda Síochána develop its own domestic abuse strategy.
Other recommendations include support and protecting victims and to develop procedures to better identify and deal with domestic abuse involving members of its workforce.
The Inspectorate also recommends that An Garda Síochána enhance the skills and ability of all garda personnel involved in tackling domestic abuse through the provision of a domestic abuse-related plan.
This plan should be developed in consultation with relevant agencies and support services.
The report added that more needs to be done by An Garda Síochána to prevent abuse from occurring, to protect victims, manage perpetrators and ensure that all victims of domestic abuse receive a trauma-informed service when they report to the Garda Síochána.
Cork West Division’s Protected Services Unit (PSU) operates from above Dunmanway Garda Station and deals with issues of domestic violence and sexual crimes.
