WHEN WE THINK about anti-social behaviour in Dublin, the term “street-involved” describes people whose daily lives involve spending significant time in public spaces — often linked to homelessness or housing instability, reliance on day services, or long-term exclusion from mainstream supports.

They are not a single group, and not all behaviour is the same, but what they share is a greater reliance on public spaces as part of everyday life.

Examples of anti-social and low-level criminal behaviours commonly attributed to this group include gathering in groups, raised voices, fighting, street-based drug use and/or alcohol consumption (Dublin has bye-laws against the latter), low-level drug dealing and aggressive or organised begging.

Their multiple and complex needs do not mean antisocial behaviour should be tolerated; it means that we need to respond to the realities that shape where and how it occurs.

Over the past 25 years working in and around Dublin City Centre, I’ve heard Gardaí refer to a mysterious colleague who never appears on the roster but is familiar to all of them across Dublin — and indeed across Ireland. They call them Officer Rain (in the UK, the phenomenon is known as PC Rain). This colleague is said to be one of the most effective — not because anything has been solved, but because rain reduces how much time people spend in public space.

Does 'Officer Rain' hold off crime rates in winter? Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

In winter, public spaces empty out; people head home earlier; groups disperse, and time spent outdoors shortens. Antisocial behaviour associated with people who are street-involved does not disappear, but it becomes less visible and less concentrated — not because underlying issues have been resolved, but because cold, darkness and bad weather reduce how long people spend in public spaces. Officer Rain is on the beat.

That does not mean winter is quiet or uncomplicated from a policing perspective. Pressures shift rather than disappear. But one thing happens consistently: reduced visibility means out of sight........

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