Michael McDowell
Prison plans announced
Garda sergeants and inspectors have called on the authorities to train gardaí in how to treat fatal accidents as crime scenes.
At its annual conference in Cork, the AGSI heard there were only eight such forensic traffic investigators in the country and that each of these had been trained in Britain at their own expense.
Given the increasing number of fatalities on the roads, the AGSI says that some families are unable to find out what happened to their loved ones who have been killed in road traffic accidents.
The AGSI says it is vital that gardaí are properly trained to investigate these accidents fully and to give closure to those bereaved by traffic accidents.
Earlier at the conference, the Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell, announced plans to build two new jails which will be larger than any that currently exist in the State, and will result in the imprisonment of more people than ever before.
Mr McDowell also said he will review drug trafficking legislation so as to limit judicial discretion when sentencing drug traffickers.
He says he will review current drug trafficking legislation, specifically mitigating factors, such as a plea of guilty. Most drug dealers in these cases, he said, are caught red-handed and he did not accept that a guilty plea for commercial drug traffickers should merit a reduced sentence.
McDowell plans new prisons
The Minister outlined plans to build a new jail for over 1,000 inmates to replace the four currently on the Mountjoy complex in Dublin.
He also wants to build an 800-inmate jail on Spike Island to replace the existing Spike and Cork jails and to build a bridge across the sea to connect the jail to the mainland.
The POA later described itself as 'confused' by the announcement, recalling that only just prior to last Christmas, Mr McDowell ordered the closure of the Spike Island facility.
Mr McDowell says that with the new prisons, the prison population would increase from the present 3,300 to 4,500.
