Michael Noel Canavan , Garda Síochána

Garda Síochána

, more commonly referred to as the Gardaí , is the police force of Ireland. The service is headed by the Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Government. Its headquarters are located in the Phoenix Park in Dublin.- Terminology :...

 21578C and recipient of the Scott Medal

Scott Medal

The Walter Scott Medal is a medal awarded annually for bravery to Garda Síochána police officers and firemen. It is not a state award, being at the gift of the commissioner, but the medals are awarded by the Minister for Justice. FDNY recipients are also awarded $500, donated by the Fire Foundation...

, born 1958.

Background

Canavan was a native of Tuam

Tuam

Tuam is a town in County Galway, Ireland. The name is pronounced choo-um . It is situated west of the midlands of Ireland, and north of Galway city.-History:...

, County Galway

County Galway

County Galway is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the city of Galway. Galway County Council is the local authority for the county. There are several strongly Irish-speaking areas in the west of the county...

, and joined the force in 1978. He was awarded the Scott Medal in recognition of his valour in the arrest of Sean "Bap" Hughes of the INLA, on 16 May 1997.

Incident at Foxford

Canavan was off duty when he observed a man acting enter the Bank of Ireland

Bank of Ireland

The Bank of Ireland is a commercial bank operation in Ireland, which is one of the 'Big Four' in both parts of the island.Historically the premier banking organisation in Ireland, the Bank occupies a unique position in Irish banking history...

, following which there was a shotgun blast, after which bank customers fled the building. Pausing only to open a pub door asking the owner to call the guards, Canavan turned back to find the robber running towards a parked car, where he caught him. The robber threatened the life of Canavan, reached into his pocket but was grabbed at the wrist. During the violent struggle the robber entered the car, and grabbing a shotgun on the back seat, aimed it at Canavan, who pushed the barrel upwards and eventually subdued the suspect.

It was later determined that the robber did indeed have a pistol in his pocket and a live round in the shotgun.

The robber was identified as Sean "Bap" Hughes of the INLA, who was wanted in connection with the disappearance of Seamus Ruddy near Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 in 1985, and the murder of Garda Patrick Gerard Reynolds in Dublin in 1982. Hughes was acquitted on the charge of murder but imprisoned on the charge of robbery.

Minister of Justice, John O'Donoghue

John O'Donoghue

John O'Donoghue may refer to:* John O'Donoghue , Irish Fianna Fáil politician* John O'Donoghue , Irish journalist* John O'Donoghue , American player...

, awarded Canavan the Scott Medal at Templemore

Templemore

Templemore is a town in North Tipperary, Ireland. It is a civil parish in the historical barony of Eliogarty. It is part of the Roman Catholic parish of Templemore, Clonmore and Killea....

 on 23 July 2003.

See also

• Brian Connaughton
  Brian Connaughton
  Brian Connaughton, Garda Síochána and recipient of the Scott Medal, 8 October 1899-26 March 1983.-Background:Connaughton was a native of Ballinglas, Mountbellew, County Galway...
  
  
• Michael J. Reynolds
  Michael J. Reynolds
  Michael J. Reynolds , Garda Síochána 17673G and recipient of the Scott Medal, 1945-1975.-Incident at St. Anne's Park:A native of Kilconnell, Ballinasloe, Reynolds was one of a number of Gardaí who responded to an armed robbery at the Bank of Ireland, Killester, Dublin, on the afternoon of 11...
  
  
• Deaths of Garda officers (1980)
  Deaths of Garda officers (1980)
  Two officers of the Garda Síochána, the police force of the Ireland, were shot and killed on July 7 1980 by alleged members of the Irish National Liberation Army during a pursuit in the aftermath of a bank robbery. Occurring near Loughglynn, County Roscommon, the officers' deaths provoked a...
  
  
• Patrick Gerard Reynolds
• Jerry McCabe
  Jerry McCabe
  Detective Garda Jerry McCabe was a member of the Garda Síochána, the police force of the Republic of Ireland. McCabe was murdered in Adare, County Limerick on 7 June 1996, by members of the paramilitary group, the Provisional IRA, during the attempted robbery of a post office van.-Early...
  
  
• Yvonne Burke (Garda)
  Yvonne Burke (Garda)
  Yvonne Burke, Garda Síochána and first female recipient of the Scott Medal, born 20 April 1970.-Incident at Cabra:Burke and her colleague, Garda Brady, were on mobile patrol on the Navan Road, Cabra, on 13 November 1993 when an alarm was raised at a local supermarket...
  
  
• Garda ar Lár
  Garda ar Lár
  Garda ar Lár is an Irish television series, the second season of which was broadcast on RTÉ One throughout January and February 2009. It examines incidents where members of the country's Garda Síochána lost their lives since the foundation of the state. Over thirty members of the force have lost...
  
  

Reference

• An Garda Síochána and the Scott Medal, p.179, Gerard O'Brien, Four Courts Press
  Four Courts Press
  Four Courts Press is an Irish academic publishing house.It was founded in 1970 by Michael Adams, a managing director at the Irish Academic Press and a member of Opus Dei. Its early publications were primarily theological, notably the English translation of the Navarre Bible...
  
  , 2008. ISBN 978 1 84682 124 0
• http://www.rte.ie/tv/gardaarlar/09prog3.html
• http://www.irishecho.com/search/searchstory.cfm?id=6542&issueid=131
• http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/705850.stm