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The Garda’s use of controversial espionage powers has been drastically reduced in the past two years following a landmark High Court ruling in December 2018.
That decision, stemming from a case of convicted murderer Graham Dwyer, declared that the state’s power to access telephone data for the investigation of serious crimes violated European law.
Figures provided by the Department of Justice at show that disclosures of communication data to state agencies have been reduced by more than 60% since the decision.
A former Garda chief called the current legal deadlock “unsustainable” if the state was to fulfill its duty to care for its citizens and said the uncertainty had “tipped the balance” in favor of criminals, while advocates of civil rights said Ireland had done it repeatedly. it violated EU law, but had not yet put in place “adequate safeguards against excessive surveillance”.
The Superior Court ruling referred to felony crimes and phone records and did not directly cover the other two reasons that state agencies may search the data: for reasons of national security and for the preservation of life.
Communication data, also known as metadata, does not include the content of communications, but rather traffic data: including phone call and text message logs, call duration and location, as well as internet logs such as IP address, email address and credit. Card information.
Tracking the movement of phones played a key role in Dwyer’s trial for the August 2012 murder of Elaine O’Hara.
The figures show:
- Companies provided 13,878 data disclosures to state agencies in 2018, falling to 8,355 in 2019 and 5,184 in 2020 (down 63% in the two years);
- 13,545 disclosures were made to An Garda Síochána in 2018, falling to 8,110 in 2019 and 4,927 in 2020 (a reduction of 64%);
- 288 disclosures made to the Defense Forces in 2018, reducing to 245 in 2019 and increasing to 257 in 2020;
- 23 disclosures to GSOC in 2018, falling to zero in both 2019 and 2020;
- 23 disclosures to Revenue in 2018, falling to zero in subsequent years
Garda sources said their 2020 figures could also have been affected by the overall reduction in criminal and subversive activity.
The figures from the Defense Forces refer to national security reasons.
An Garda Síochána is the only agency authorized to search for data on the three plots, and the 5,184 cases in 2020 would include national security and the preservation of life. You can include figures on internet data for serious crime investigation, but this is not clear.
The Justice Department said that access to the metadata was an “important tool used by law enforcement agencies around the world to prevent and detect serious crimes.”
He said: “Regarding the decline in data provided in recent years, agencies are bound by the Superior Court decision in the Dwyer case regarding the Communications (Data Retention) Act of 2011.”
Following an appeal by the State, the Supreme Court referred the legal issue to the Court of Justice of the European Communities.
The department said it was still working on legislation to clarify the law and that this would take into account the rulings of Europe, including the outcome of the ECJ case.
Former Garda Deputy Commissioner Pat Leahy said legal uncertainty was “unsustainable” if the state was to fulfill its duty to care for its citizens and said the legal impasse had “tipped the balance” in favor of criminals. .
Olga Cronin of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties said: “Ireland has been found repeatedly to violate European law in this area and yet has not put in place adequate safeguards against this excessive surveillance.”
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