Garda Regional Support Unit
|
Garda Regional Support Unit Aonad Tacaíochta Réigiúnach |
|
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | RSU |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 2008 (pilot), 2012 (5 regions), 2016 (Dublin region) |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
|
National agency (Operations jurisdiction) |
Republic of Ireland |
| Legal jurisdiction | Eastern, Northern, Southern, South-Eastern, Western & Dublin regions |
| Governing body | Department of Justice and Equality |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Operators | ~ 180 |
| Agency executive | Regional Detective Superintendent |
| Parent agency |
 Garda Síochána
|
| Specialties | Specialist armed/tactical response Armed airport & port patrols |
| Facilities | |
| Vehicles |
BMW 5 Series Audi Q7 Volvo XC70 BMW X5 |
Regional Support Units (RSU) (Irish: Aonad Tacaíochta Réigiúnach) are specialist armed response units of the Garda Síochána, the national police force of Ireland. Based in all six Garda regions in the country, Garda RSU officers carry a combination of lethal firearms and non-lethal weapons, as opposed to regular uniformed Gardaí who are unarmed. They are similar to Authorised Firearms Officers of British police forces.
An armed Garda Regional Support Unit may be called out to support local Garda officers in certain high-risk operations. This principally involves offering armed assistance to otherwise unarmed Gardaí who are dealing with an incident in which firearms or other weapons (knives, etc.) have been produced. It also includes;
The first Regional Support Unit (RSU) was formed in 2008, following recommendations made by the Barr Tribunal, which brought the existence and role of the Emergency Response Unit (ERU) to public attention (April 2000, see Death of John Carthy), and questioned the Dublin-based units' ability to reach other areas of the country quickly.
Regional Support Units were originally assigned to support five individual Garda regions – administrative areas drawn on geographical lines which include the Eastern, Northern, Southern, South-Eastern and Western regions – but not the Dublin Metropolitan Region (DMR), which had remained the sole responsibility of the ERU. The first RSU was formed on a pilot basis in the Southern Region (the administrative area which includes counties Cork, Limerick and Kerry).
As of 2012, RSU units began operating on a full-time permanent armed basis in the Eastern, Northern, Southern, South-Eastern and Western regions after a trial period. Serious incidents such as barricaded sieges, hostage takings or terrorism triggers the response of the ERU anywhere in Ireland.
In 2016 it was decided that a sixth Regional Support Unit be established in the Dublin Metropolitan Region (DMR) to counteract the growing threat of gangland drug crime and terrorism risks. Previously the Dublin Garda region had been under the authority of the Garda ERU. The Dublin RSU began operating in early 2016 with a complement of 55-60 full-time armed officers, including 5 sergeants. The Dublin-based unit is equipped with marked and unmarked vehicles, and was officially launched in late 2016.
...
Wikipedia