The relatives of three people, including an 11-year-old boy, killed by the British army in Derry in 1971 and 1982, have said they have “no confidence” in a PSNI review of the killings.
Stephen McConomy
Minty Thompson and Majorie Roddy, whose mother and uncle were shot dead by British soldiers in 1971, and Emmett McConomy, whose11-year-old brother Emmett was killed by a plastic bullet fired by a soldier 1n 1982, have called for independent inquiry into the killings.
The three killings are among 13 carried out by British soldiers to be reviewed by the PSNI that had been the susbject of a Historical Enquiry Team (HET) review.
Mrs Thompson, a 47-year-old mother of six, was shot dead in the back yard of her Creggan home on 6 November, 1971.
Speaking today, her daughter, Minty said a PSNI review into the killing was “unacceptable” and her family would be seeking “urgent legal advice.”
She added: “The RUC failed to investigate the murder of our mother in the first place. Why should we have any confidence in a review carried out by the PSNI? These cases should be reviewed by a body independent of the PSNI.”
Eleven-year-old Stephen McConomy was out playing with friends close to his Bogside home when he was hit in the head by a plastic bullet fired by a member of the British army’s Royal Anglian Regiment on 16 April, 1982.
Eyewitnesses who tried to get aid to the St John’s Primary School pupil were prevented from doing so by soldiers, who threatened to shoot anyone who went near him.
The fatally wounded schoolboy was taken to Altnagelvin hospital from where he was immediately transferred to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast where he died three days later.
His brother, Emmett, said PSNI Chief Constable Matt Baggott was “making the biggest mistake of his career” by allowing his officers to review the killing.
He added: “Stephen’s case was under review by the HET and this has now been suspended. We will only accept a renewed investigation if this is carried out by a body completely independent of the police.
“When Stephen was murdered the police failed to even interview the soldier under caution. Does the Chief Constable seriously believe that we would accept a PSNI review at this stage? We met the PSNI in 2001 and they treated us with contempt. They wouldn’t even accept that an 11 year child was ‘innocent’. The PSNI should stick to policing the present not the past.”
Billy McGreanery (41) was shot dead by a member of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards at the junction of Eastway and Lone Moor Gardens on 15 September, 1971.
His niece, Marjorie Roddy, said her family had no confidence in a “PSNI paper exercise.”
She added: “Exactly what isn’t needed. What we need and deserve is a completely independent review of cases that have been completed. We have no faith whatsoever in a PSNI paper exercise.’
Paul O’Connor, of the Pat Finucane Centre, accused the PSNI of “arrogance and gross insensitivity” to the families.
He said: ‘There has been no consultation or communication with families or NGOs. We warned the Policing Board last week that these cases must be reviewed by a body independent of the PSNI. The DNA of the PSNI is inextricably linked to the DNA of the RUC which was central to the original illegal cover-up of British Army killings between 1970 and 1973.”
Mr O’Connor said if the Chief Constable chose to push ahead with the reviews against the wishes of the families, he would find himself on a “collision course” that would lead to “litigation” and would have a “damaging effect on the climate of current policing.”
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