A number of domestic violence incidents were reported to the gardaí in Clare early last month with Crime Prevention Officer, Sergeant Triona Books assuring victims that they gardai are them to help them.
Sergeant Triona Brooks, who is based at Ennis Garda Station, said, “We want to encourage anybody with difficulties in relation to domestic violence to contact the gardaí – we are concerned that victims of any crime but especially domestic violence might be reluctant to contact gardaí as they may think that we are too busy to help them.
“The Garda service in Clare has not been impacted by Covid 19 in fact, because of the restructuring of An Garda Síochána there are more gardaí than ever on our streets and in our communities around the county and we are ready to assist and protect all victims including victims of domestic abuse.”
Sergeant Brooks said that Operation Faoiseamh now uses the Garda Victims Services Office to make phone contact with previous victims of domestic abuse. Their purpose is to find out if there are any issues that gardaí may be able to resolve and any concerns will be responded to immediately.
“One of our functions is to assist the victim in getting access to the many support services available and to the Courts Services so that protection and safety orders can be obtained and these will help to ensure the protection of the victim and the family involved.
“If you are a victim of abuse or you know of a family member or friend who is a victim of such abuse, that information is important to us. Please make contact with An Garda Síochána. If you require urgent assistance, please call 999 or 112, gardaí are there to listen to help and to protect you,” she emphasised.
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.