‘We must support victims’ of drink spiking, says Cork TD

A Cork TD has called for better protocols around spiking, saying that victims are being doubted by hospitals.

Fianna Fáil TD for Cork South Central Seamus McGrath said there are instances where drugs are put into a person’s drink without their consent or knowledge, which can lead to serious offences such as sexual assault or violence.

He explained that a friend of his shared an incident involving her daughter: “I obviously will not refer to names or anything but this happened in Cork in recent weeks.

“This woman’s teenage daughter was out enjoying herself socially and suddenly became extremely intoxicated, not because of the drink she consumed — she was only drinking moderately that evening — but because, in her strong view, her drink must have been spiked.

“She attended Cork University Hospital and it is from there that the story really begins to explain why there is a need for a far better protocol to be put in place for incidents like this. One of her parents had to come to the hospital to explain the situation. Effectively, her explanation of what had happened to her was being doubted.

“Because it was Leaving Certificate night, there was an assumption that she had drunk too much. Her story was not fully listened to and she was not attended to in the way she should have been. 

"There was no mention of calling An Garda Síochána. There was no reference to a urine or blood test. Effectively, there was no protocol in place.”

He said that Cork’s Mary Crilly, who supports victims of sexual violence, has highlighted this as a common and serious issue, and has called for significantly better systems, protocols and laws to be put in place.

Mr McGrath called for hospital testing and Garda investigations to be undertaken, saying: “We must support victims, believe their stories and ensure they are given the benefit of the doubt.”