Gardai Breath Tests: How Hot Press Predicted The Scandal As Early as 2008

In an article titled "The dangerous duplicity at the heart of our road death statistics", which dates back to February 2008, Colm O'Hare spoke with several different agencies and considered the policies both at home and abroad when it came to road accidents. He found that when it came to deciding on the best ways of stopping accidents, the Gardai used and reproduced data that was in some cases misleading, and in other cases flat out wrong. The article points out that the Gardai's efforts to introduce stricter laws to prevent road deaths focuses disproportionately on alcohol, and neglects to consider what effect bad roads, careless driving, and an inefficient driver's test have on the rate of road accidents.

The article also examines the practices of other authorities in countries like Canada and Australia, and finds that reducing the blood alcohol limit had no effect on the number of car-related fatalities.

"According to research carried out by the Canadian Traffic Injury Research Foundation in 2002, there was no compelling evidence that lowering the BAC to .05 reduced fatalities. As the report stated, 'our critical review of the evaluation literature failed to provide strong, consistent and unqualified support for lowering BAC limits. At best, the results are mixed and the methodological weaknesses in the studies question the robustness and veracity of the evidence. There is little evidence that lowering the BAC limit from 80 to 50 mg/dL will, in and of itself, result in fewer alcohol related traffic deaths.'"

In an eerie foreshadowing of the current scandal, which has rocked Gardai members and politicians at the highest level, the article points to the problems that can arise when officers of the law are made to meet bureaucratic quotas based on Draconian laws, rather than actually enforcing and encouraging safety on the roads.

It reads: "Meanwhile, Australia – the only English speaking country with the 0.05 five limit – has had its own problems with enforcing the lower limit. A report by the Ombudsman for Western Australia, following an investigation into a breath-testing scam, found that between September 2000 and March 2001, random breath-testing statistics “were systematically falsified with evidence that 93.5% of recorded random breath tests during that period were falsified.” Overall, at least 35% of Australian random breath tests were false."

"There was a huge outcry at the time, yet the problem arose again as recently as last October. According to Brisbane’s Courier-Mail, police officers “routinely manipulated alcohol testers to generate fake negative readings so they can meet a quota of three million breath tests a year.” Police claimed they are too overworked to meet the quota, with one Brisbane officer who retired in 2004 saying that for more than a decade he was “faking an average of five tests for every legitimate one he performed.”

The article finishes (perhaps ironically, given what we now know) with the lines: "We can only hope our own law enforcement officers don’t follow Australia’s “best practice” methods", before considering the increased pressure being put on the Gardai to follow the misguided Australian model.

9 years later, the results of the Gardai's policies are plain to see. The question now is, will they admit to their mistakes, or will they double down on failed policies?