Thomas Joseph Commons
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Thomas Joseph Commons (born 4 January 1950), is a senior Irish police officer (Garda 18035A) and Scott Medal recipient. Commons was a native of
County Mayo County Mayo (; ga, Contae Mhaigh Eo, meaning "Plain of the Taxus baccata, yew trees") is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Conn ...
, who was a junior clerk prior to joining the
Garda Síochána (; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace"), more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards", is the national police service of Ireland. The service is headed by the Garda Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Gover ...
on 17 November 1971. He was on motorcycle patrol in Dublin on the evening of 22 July 1978 when he stopped and questioned two men suspected of an armed robbery and vicious assault. One attempted to fire at Garda Commons at point-blank range, but the gun misfired. A lengthy pursuit ensued, which ended with Garda Commons wrestling the gunman to the ground and subduing him. Other members of the force arrived on the scene, and the other suspect was arrested. Examination of the gun revealed it to be in perfect working order; Commons's life was saved only by the fact that the wrong gauge of bullet was loaded. Garda Commons was awarded the Scott Bronze Medal at Templemore in June 1980. He became a
Sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
the same year, an
Inspector Inspector, also police inspector or inspector of police, is a police rank. The rank or position varies in seniority depending on the organization that uses it. Australia In Australian police forces, the rank of inspector is generally the ne ...
in 1994, and promoted to Superintendent in 1998. he is still a member of the force.


References

* ''An Garda Síochána and the Scott Medal'', pp. 107–108, Gerard O'Brien, Four Courts Press, Dublin, 2008. {{DEFAULTSORT:Commons, Thomas Joseph Garda Síochána officers Police officers from County Mayo Living people Recipients of the Scott Medal 1950 births