A spokesperson for the Garda Representative Association believes an assault on members of the force in Waterford could have been prevented if they were armed with tasers.
Four gardai were bitten in the arms, kicked and threatened as they tried to arrest a man in Waterford City yesterday morning.
Paul Anderson from the GRA says they're pleased that the gardai in question avoided serious injury.
"They had to go and get inoculations, they had to go and get tetanus jabs.
"It reflects the fact that there's a growing level of violence in society and it reflects the growing level of assaults faced by our members
"In Waterford, we've seen acid attacks, which are quite new in the Irish context.
"We've seen broken bones, lacerations. In Dublin, Gardai were fired upon recently.
"Yet we're still putting Gardai out to work without the equipment to protect themselves."
He says a taser alone is a deterrent.
"I would say if the Gardai in question had the tasers that we would like them to have and we've been calling for, then the incident probably wouldn't have happened at all.
"Simply producing a taser, according to research, can actually de-escalate 90% of situations."
Arrest
A man arrested in connection with the incident was charged at Waterford Garda Station last night.
He was released on his own bail and is due to appear before Waterford District Court on the 27th of October.
A file is also being prepared for the DPP with a view to further charges.
