Nóirín O'Sullivan
| Nóirín O'Sullivan | |
|---|---|
| 20th Garda Commissioner | |
|
Assumed office 25 November 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Martin Callinan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Dublin, Ireland |
Nóirín O'Sullivan is the current Commissioner of An Garda Síochána, the Republic of Ireland's police force. She was appointed to the role on an official, permanent basis in November 2014.[1] She is the first woman to lead the Gardaí in its 92-year history.
Career and experience
O'Sullivan is from Dublin, and joined An Garda Síochána in 1981.[2]
In 2000, she was promoted to Superintendent and served in the Garda Síochána College with responsibility for specialist training. She also worked as a Detective Superintendent in the Garda National Drugs Unit (GNDU). In 2003, she was promoted to Chief Superintendent and served as Detective Chief Superintendent at the Garda Technical Bureau and Human Resource Management.[3]
O'Sullivan was promoted to Assistant Commissioner in 2007, and served in the Western Region, followed by Human Resource Management.[3]
In June 2009, she was appointed Assistant Commissioner in charge of the Crime and Security Branch (CSB), with responsibility for Ireland's domestic state security. In this role she had responsibility for elite, specialist national units such as the Special Detective Unit, Emergency Response Unit and National Surveillance Unit.[3]
She became Deputy Commissioner of Operations in 2011.[4]
O’Sullivan was appointed Garda Commissioner on an interim basis after the resignation of Martin Callinan on 25 March 2014. She formally took over the role of Commissioner on a permanent basis following her appointment by the Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald on 25 November 2014, becoming the first female Commissioner to head the force since its foundation in 1922.[5]
Involvement in Garda whistle-blower scandal and controversies
O'Sullivan was mentioned in the 2017 Prime Time special broadcast concerning the Garda whistleblower scandal.[6]
Her response to the Garda whistleblower scandal, together with her predecessors', will be the subject of enquiry during the first module of the Disclosures Tribunal.[7]
In April 2014, a month after her appointment as Garda Commissioner, an allegation of inflated breath test figures was brought to her attention, following a tip-off in the form of a letter sent to the Road Safety Authority.[8]
In March 2017, O'Sullivan came under pressure after a series of scandals came to light. It was announced that 14,700 people were wrongly convicted of motoring offences after they weren't given the opportunity to pay a Fixed Charge Notice.[9] Also, almost one million phantom breath tests were recorded on the Garda Pulse system, with figures claiming that 1,995,369 tests were carried out with only 1,061,381 actually taking place.[10]
Educational qualifications
- Graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) National Executive Institute (NEI XXXIV) – Executive Leadership Programme designed for Chiefs of Police worldwide (2011)
- Advanced Management Diploma (1st Class Hons) – Michael Smurfit School of Business, University College Dublin (2007)
- Executive Education Programme – Driving Government Performance, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University (2007)
- Master of Business Studies (1st Class Hons), Michael Smurfit School of Business, University College Dublin (2006)
- Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD)
- Certificate in Strategic HRM Development, Irish Management Institute (2005)
- Bachelor of Arts Degree (1st Class Hons) Police Management - awarded by HETAC and delivered by Garda College and University of Limerick
- Diploma in Addiction Studies, Trinity College Dublin (1992)[3]
References
- ↑ "Garda has first female commissioner". Irish Independent. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ↑ "Whistleblower welcomes O’Sullivan appointment as Garda Commissioner". Irish Examiner. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- 1 2 3 4 "An Garda Síochána - Management Biographies". An Garda Síochána. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ↑ "History made as O'Sullivan is first ever female to be Garda chief". Herald. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ↑ "Nóirín O’Sullivan is the new Garda Commissioner". Journal. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ↑ "Garda chief says she will not step aside in whistleblower smear campaign row". Irish Independent. 13 February 2017. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
- ↑ Ryan, Órla (6/3/17). "Most people want Nóirín O’Sullivan to resign or step aside as Garda Commissioner". thejournal.ie. Retrieved 29/3/17. Check date values in:
|access-date=, |date=(help) - ↑ Lally, Conor (28/3/17). "Garda account of breath-test debacle wearing ever thinner". The Irish Times. Check date values in:
|date=(help) - ↑ "Tom Clonan: Noirín O'Sullivan's performance in recent days is simply not credible". The Journal. 28 March 2017. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
- ↑ "An Garda Siochana review will be thorough, Enda Kenny pledges". Irish Independent. 28 March 2017. Retrieved 29 March 2017.
External links
| Police appointments | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Martin Callinan |
Commissioner of An Garda Síochána 2014–present |
Incumbent |