Case Notes #010: Crisis Negotiation
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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How did Martin Egan become a crisis negotiator?
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My name is John Sweetman, and this is Lines of Inquiry Case Notes.
In Case Notes, we step away from telling one specific case in detail, and instead take some time to reflect, to revisit past investigations, and to respond directly to you, the listener. to keep up to date. My guest today is Martin Egan, retired Detective Sergeant with Llangarda Síochána. Martin spent 30 years in the force and worked across a range of high-pressure operational roles, including as a trained Garda crisis negotiator. One of the cases that stayed with him was the case involving Jasmine McMoneagle in County Donegal in 2019, where he was part of the response team that arrived at the house and negotiated with her killer. Throughout his career, Martin was involved in some of the most challenging and sensitive moments of policing, where communication, judgment and timing could make a decisive difference in critical moments.
Martin, you're very welcome.
Thanks very much.
What skills are essential for crisis negotiation?
You spent 30 years in the job. You retired. When did you retire? Retired in October 2022. So basically about a year before me, I went in September 23. And to say you did the 30 years there. And as we said in the opening, you spent some of your time as a crisis negotiator. But what brought you into that kind of role or?
Well, I suppose it took a long time. It was only in my last 10 years that that role came up.
What challenges arise during a crisis negotiation?
So I had a good 21 years in the guards behind me before that. And it wasn't something when I started in the guards, there was no negotiators. Right. It was all like what a lot of guards do is from experience, use other people's experiences, use what they have around them. Yeah. So then at some point I applied for it and I don't know was there many applicants, but I got it anyway.
Yeah.
And it was down to Templemore then for a week's intensive training.
But it'd be fairly intensive stuff because you'd have to be, you know, there'd be loads of different facets to it, like communication skills, probably touching on psychology and stuff like that and being able to deal with pressure. So I'd imagine like it's a role that you'd find out fairly quickly if it suited you or you suited it.
Yeah. And I think one of the things you said there was fairly accurate. On reflection, I never got a call when I was working. I think I got one. I was always off. I was always asleep. So you were switched off from work.
Yeah.
And the next thing you get a call, Martin, such and such is after happening. And you go, you could be an hour driving to it.
How did the Jasmine McMonagle case unfold?
You could be 10 minutes away from it. Yeah. So you were kind of having to switch on into it. So the idea I presume was if you were tired, can you operate in the tired? Yeah. And then the debriefs were very good during the training because you You got very conscious of your strengths and your weaknesses, what you were good at, what you weren't good at, what you needed to improve on. I remember my first one I went to, it was a man on a bridge. And just as I pulled up, I went, this is for real. We're in Temple Moor, we had a man on a roof.
Yeah.
But he was never going to jump off. Yeah, yeah.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–0:40
2
How did Martin Egan become a crisis negotiator?
0:40–2:38
3
What skills are essential for crisis negotiation?
2:38–3:05
4
What challenges arise during a crisis negotiation?
3:05–4:07
5
How did the Jasmine McMonagle case unfold?
4:07–5:01
6
What decisions were made to ensure the children's safety?
5:01–6:04
7
How does one cope with the emotional impact of such cases?
6:04–6:59
8
What reflections does Martin have on his career in the Garda?
6:59–27:10