The High Court has awarded €286,630 in compensation to a garda injured while restraining a prisoner at Limerick Circuit Court in 2004. The court accepted that the applicant’s knee injury caused lasting pain and disability but rejected his claim that it prevented him from securing promotion to inspector.
The application was brought under the Garda (Compensation) Acts. The judge, Mr Justice Bernard J. Barton, delivered judgment on 24 May 2019. The parties had agreed €166,630 for pecuniary losses: €129,224 for past and future earnings as a sergeant, €26,894 for medical costs associated with knee replacements and €10,512 for other expenses.
The remaining financial dispute concerned whether the applicant would probably have been appointed an inspector but for his injury. He had passed the inspector examinations before the assault, but was unsuccessful in promotion interview competitions in 2010 and 2014. He argued that his disabilities, particularly his inability to perform outdoor policing duties, explained those outcomes.
The court found that the applicant suffered a serious fracture to his left knee, requiring surgery, and that he later developed post-traumatic osteoarthritis. His condition caused increasing pain and restricted his walking. The judge accepted that a knee replacement was likely and that, even after the operation, the applicant would probably not be medically certified for full frontline policing duties.
On promotion, the judge accepted evidence from a Garda Human Resources inspector that interview boards did not receive candidates’ medical records and were not told about duty-related injuries. Candidates from administrative roles could be appointed inspector. The court found that the applicant’s injuries played no part in the outcomes of the 2010 and 2014 interviews. It was not satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that he would have been appointed inspector without the injury. The court therefore did not assess the claimed loss of inspector-level earnings or make an additional award for loss of opportunity.
For pain and suffering, the court awarded €95,000 for the past and €25,000 for the future. Added to the agreed pecuniary losses, the total award was €286,630. The judgment also said the applicant’s injuries would not be an impediment if he applied in a future promotion competition.