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ABSTRACT
While police scandals are often assumed to arise from major forms of misconduct, here I argue that minor or banal events can also precipitate scandals and mobilise significant reform initiatives. My argument is based on a case-study analysis of two scandals surrounding allegations of misconduct in relation to road traffic policing in Ireland. The first case involved allegations that ‘fixed charges notices’ (issued for various driving offences) were cancelled inappropriately. The second case emerged from disclosures surrounding the vast over-counting of the number of roadside breath-tests conducted by police officers. Although these events may appear banal at first glance, they had an enormous effect on the policing landscape. Drawing on analysis of the numerous inquiries and investigations into these events, I suggest that the impact of scandal is amplified when two factors are present. First, the scandal surrounding an issue grows when it serves as a catalyst, adding to the momentum of other concerns. Second, a scandal is also magnified when it raises systemic concerns that extend beyond any individual misconduct and call into question basic features of organisational competence and legitimacy.
Acknowledgements
Earlier versions of this paper were presented at the conferences of the Sociological Association of Ireland and the European Society of Criminology, and I am extremely grateful for the helpful feedback I received there. I also appreciate the insightful comments provided by the editor and reviewers on earlier versions of the paper. Lastly, my warm thanks to Alice Feldman and Sara O'Sullivan for their support and wise counsel.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.
Notes
1 For ease of terminology, here I use ‘car crime’ as shorthand to refer to all motor vehicle related offences (including motorbikes, heavy goods vehicles, etc.).
2 Bradford et al. (Citation2012, p. 19) note that while the Royal Commission found in its 1960 research that approximately 35 per cent of police officers viewed ‘motorists’ as ‘more against’ the police now than 10 years ago, by 2012 that figure had doubled to over 70 per cent of officers.
3 This movement emerged in the aftermath of several high-profile incidents in the USA to highlight the dubious basis on which many black men were killed by the police (see https://blacklivesmatter.com/).
4 This role was established in 2007 to enable police officers to report concerns about malpractice without being subject to disciplinary action as a result.
5 McCabe's fortitude and determination were crucial in establishing these issues as ‘public events’ (Gusfield Citation1980). Similarly, the newly established Policing Authority and several politicians played key roles in highlighting these concerns and demanding an appropriate response from the authorities. Given their impact, the role that institutional ‘advocates’ play in championing scandalous claims is an issue that warrants further research.
6 Bailey was twice arrested in connection with the 1996 murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier in West Cork, although the Irish authorities never charged him with her murder (in 2019 a French court convicted him in his absence of her murder). Bailey and his partner brought a civil action against the state for wrongful arrest. During the discovery process, it emerged that phone calls to one of the local Garda stations had been recorded. Revelations over the widespread nature of this practice led to the establishment of the Fennelly Commission (Citation2017), which reported that approximately 2,500 calls had been recorded over a period of decades. These revelations were unconnected with McCabe's case, but their temporal coincidence eroded Callinan's position considerably.
7 Shatter (Citation2019) challenged the Guerin Report findings, and ultimately was vindicated in the Court of Appeal in 2017 which criticised the Report for reaching its findings without providing Shatter with an opportunity to respond to the allegations against him.