Tight security for first court hearing in Bloody Sunday case
Written by News on 18/09/2019
Security will be tight at Londonderry Magistrates Court for the first hearing in the case of a former British soldier charged with two murders in 1972.
Known only as ‘Soldier F’, the veteran will be represented by his legal team but is not expected to appear in person at this stage of proceedings.
He is the only former British soldier currently facing prosecution in relation to events on what became known as Bloody Sunday 47 years ago.
Thirteen people were shot dead and a fourteenth died months later from his injuries when members of the Parachute Regiment opened fire after a civil rights march in Derry.
The accused, now in his late 60s, will be charged with the murders of two men, Jim Wray and William McKinney.
He will be further charged with the attempted murders of four others, Joseph Friel, Michael Quinn, Joe Mahon and Patrick O’Donnell.
‘Soldier F’, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, faces an additional charge of attempting to murder “persons unknown” – a total of seven charges.
In a letter to relatives of the victims, the Public Prosecution Service said it had received confirmation that the case “will be challenged in the Magistrates Court”.
“This means that the hearing on 18th September will likely be a short procedural hearing in relation to the timetabling of the case going forward,” it added.
Prosecutors explained that the case would not be proceeding as a committal hearing at this stage and “as such the accused will not be attending in person”.
The letter added that in the event of “lawful protests” outside the Bishop Street courthouse, access into and out of the building would not be impeded.
(c) Sky News 2019: Tight security for first court hearing in Bloody Sunday case
