DOCSLIB.ORG

Guildford Pub Bombs: Conlons' Fight Continues After Sister's Death’

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Guildford Pub Bombs: Conlons' Fight Continues After Sister's Death’ Networked Knowledge Media Reports Networked Knowledge IRA Bombing Cases Homepage This page set up by Dr Robert N Moles [Underlining, where it occurs is for NetK editorial emphasis] On 5 April 2018 Tanya Gupta of the BBC reported ‘Guildford pub bombs: Conlons' fight continues after sister's death’ Ann McKernan told the BBC in 2016 that hundreds of closed files still needed to be made public. The family of Gerry Conlon, one of 11 people wrongly convicted for the 1974 Guildford pub bombings, have vowed to continue their fight for justice following the death of his sister. Ann McKernan, 58, who led the family's campaign, died in Belfast on Monday. A pre-inquest review (PIR) into the Guildford bombings is due to be held this year after the original inquest in the 1970s never concluded. Mrs McKernan's sister Bridie Brennan will now take the lead for the family. Lawyers from KRW Law, who applied for the PIR on behalf of Mrs McKernan and a survivor after the BBC viewed official papers on the case, confirmed they now represent Ms Brennan. 'Inspirational' Mrs McKernan, who died at home surrounded by her four daughters, saw both her brother Gerry and her father Patrick "Guiseppe" Conlon jailed over the bombings which killed five and injured 65. Patrick Conlon was one of the Maguire Seven, convicted on explosives charges, and his son was one of the Guildford Four jailed for murder. All 11 eventually had their convictions quashed, but Gerry Conlon served 15 years in prison and his father died four years into his 12-year prison term. Weeks before Mrs McKernan died, she made her daughter Sarah McIlhone and her sister promise to continue the family's campaign to establish the truth. Ms McIlhone described her mother as an "inspirational" woman who was forced to grow up at a young age. "She had to run the home, she had to visit prison. She became thoroughly independent." Ms McIlhone told the BBC: "She kept up her strength and dignity. She was extremely strong in the face of everything that happened. "Not many people would have been able to continue. "She campaigned for justice, and to help others, and she was fierce - a strong Belfast woman who took no nonsense." 'Hooded and beaten' In an interview with the BBC after official papers were released in 2016, Mrs McKernan described how at the age of 15 she saw her brother's arrest. "We lived in a two-up, two-down, ordinary house and the police and the army came in and kicked the door in, looking for Gerry." She said the family thought he had been arrested for stealing, but later heard he had been sent to Guildford. "They had already put a hood over his head," she said. "When my mother got his clothes back, they were soaked in blood." Police later denied any ill-treatment. Her father, who had tuberculosis, travelled to England to help his son. He stayed with family in London - the Maguire Seven. The group were also arrested and later wrongly-jailed on explosives charges. Two or three times a year Mrs McKernan visited her brother and father in prison with her mother, Sarah Conlon. Guiseppe Conlon did not return to his family. The papers of former Home Secretary Merlyn Rees - later Lord Rees - showed plans were drawn up to release him hours before he died, still a prisoner. Christopher Stanley, from KRW Law, said: "It is with sadness that we mark the death of our client Ann McKernan, who campaigned until her death for truth and justice on behalf of her brother Gerry and her father Guiseppe Conlon." Another key figure in the case, former police chief Lord Peter Imbert died last year. Mr Stanley said: "As victims and relatives die, as witnesses grow older and memories fade and as the physical evidence becomes more difficult to trace, the obligations upon the state do not wither but rather demand immediate attention and action." A spokesman for Surrey Coroner Richard Travers said it was hoped an initial hearing would take place in June. Ann McKernan's funeral took place at St Peter's Cathedral in Belfast earlier on Thursday. http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-surrey-43641895 .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 4Th Quarter 2016 and Was Highly Motivated to Seek Answers
    News of the California Association of Criminalists • Fourth Quarter 2016 Making Things Happen When I was a kid, I had a poster of three baby raccoons in my room with the following quote. It is a quote that I always liked and still try to live by today. “There are people who make things happen, there are people who watch things happen, and there are people who wonder what happened.” It’s a cliché saying, but it’s also very applicable to those of us who work in forensic science. I’ve been CAC President for a few months now, so I looked back at my last address to evaluate whether I am “making things happen,” or in other words, whether I am achieving the goals I set forth at the beginning of my term. One of the goals I set forth was increasing CAC membership. Living in California is expensive, and sometimes criminalists have so many living expenses that they struggle to pay annual dues for a number of professional memberships. I found that this keeps criminalists from becoming CAC members. Therefore, I convinced my Laboratory Director to pay for an additional professional mem- bership fee for each of our criminalists. This has encouraged many more of my colleagues to join the CAC. Thank you, Ian Fitch! Now I will work to get more of these new members to attend study group meetings and seminars. Maybe I can even get one or two of them to present some of their fine work. Are any other laboratories able to dig a little deeper to find some funding to financially assist their criminalists in participating in professional activities? Another goal was to get more people to serve so that our association as a whole can “make things happen.” I have asked a lot of people to step up and serve and have only been met with enthusiasm.
    [Show full text]
  • Building Institutions to Address Miscarriages of Justice in England and Wales: “Mission Accomplished?”
    University of Cincinnati Law Review Volume 80 Issue 4 Article 13 September 2013 Building Institutions to Address Miscarriages of Justice in England and Wales: “Mission Accomplished?” Carole McCartney Stephanie Roberts Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.uc.edu/uclr Recommended Citation Carole McCartney and Stephanie Roberts, Building Institutions to Address Miscarriages of Justice in England and Wales: “Mission Accomplished?”, 80 U. Cin. L. Rev. (2013) Available at: https://scholarship.law.uc.edu/uclr/vol80/iss4/13 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by University of Cincinnati College of Law Scholarship and Publications. It has been accepted for inclusion in University of Cincinnati Law Review by an authorized editor of University of Cincinnati College of Law Scholarship and Publications. For more information, please contact [email protected]. McCartney and Roberts: Building Institutions to Address Miscarriages of Justice in Engla BUILDING INSTITUTIONS TO ADDRESS MISCARRIAGES OF JUSTICE IN ENGLAND AND WALES: ‘MISSION ACCOMPLISHED’? Carole McCartney* & Stephanie Roberts**† ABSTRACT The revelation of miscarriages of justice can lead a criminal justice system to a crisis point, which can be capitalized upon to engineer legal reforms. In England and Wales, these reforms have included the establishment of three bodies: the Court of Criminal Appeal, the Criminal Cases Review Commission, and the Forensic Regulator. With differing remits, these institutions are all intended to address miscarriages of justice. After outlining the genesis of these bodies, we question whether these three institutions are achieving their specific goals. This Article then outlines the benefits accrued from the establishment of these bodies and the controversies that surround their operation.
    [Show full text]
  • Autumn Newsletter 2014
    ICPO NEWS Issue Number 69 Published by the Irish Council for Prisoners Overseas Autumn 2014 Gerry Conlon (01 March 1954—21 June 2014) It was with great sadness that despair in others and endeavoured we learned of the death of to be there. Gerry was an Gerry Conlon. Gerry spent 15 inspiration to us all. He left us years in prison for a crime he with a legacy to strive as he did for peace and justice for all. did not commit and following his release spent many years Nuala Kelly, fighting injustice on behalf of Former ICPO Coordinator others. In this edition of I was a student in Belfast at the ICPO News those who worked time of the arrest of the with Gerry in his struggle to Guildford Four and I recall an prove his innocence and in his article in the Belfast Bulletin fight for justice for others about Gerry's Dad Guiseppe, pay tribute to him. detailing the horror of his arrest when he went to visit his son in prison. Little did I think Breda Power, ICPO London that I would be visiting the Writing this tribute for Gerry families and the guys still in Conlon proved very difficult for prison 10 years later after I me. Knowing Gerry on a personal started working for ICPO. They level as a friend and also a fellow were to remain in prison for up to campaigner against injustice, I was unsure which of seven more years even after campaigns built Gerry's characteristics to speak of. After much momentum for their release and vindication.
    [Show full text]
  • Convicting the Innocent: a Triple Failure of the Justice System
    Convicting the Innocent: A Triple Failure of the Justice System BRUCE MACFARLANE* TABLE OF CONTENTS I. DEFINING THE ISSUE 405 II. INTERNATIONAL REVIEWS DURING THE PAST CENTURY 406 A. American Prison Congress Review (1912) 406 B. U.S. State Department Document (1912) 407 C. Borchard Study (1932) 408 D. Franks’ Study (1957) 409 E. Du Cann Study (1960) 411 F. Radin Study (1964) 412 G. Brandon and Davies Study (1973) 413 H. Royal Commissions in Australia and New Zealand During the 1980s 413 I. IRA Bombings in Britain (1980s) 417 1. Guildford Four 417 2. Birmingham Six 418 3. Maguire Seven 419 4. Judith Ward 419 * Bruce A. MacFarlane, Q.C., of the Manitoba and Alberta Bars, Professional Affiliate, Faculty of Law, University of Manitoba, formerly Deputy Attorney General of Manitoba (1993-2005). This essay is based on an earlier paper presented at the Heads of Prosecution Agencies in the Commonwealth Con- ference at Darwin, Australia on 7 May 2003, the Heads of Legal Aid Plans in Canada on 25 August 2003 and, once again, at the Heads of Prosecution Agencies in the Commonwealth Conference at Bel- fast, Northern Ireland and Dublin, Ireland during the week of 4 September 2005. Following these pres- entations, counsel from England, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Hong Kong and the United States, as well as Canadian provinces, provided me with a number of helpful comments. I have benefited greatly from this advice. I also wish to express my appreciation to Julia Gurr, for her assistance in updating the paper during the summer of 2005.
    [Show full text]
  • The Miscarriages of Justice Organisation Mental Health
    The Miscarriages of Justice Organisation Response Mental Health Strategy for Scotland 2011­15 A Consultation Chapters 1 What is available for the trauma inflicted upon the Wrongfully Convicted 2 Appendixes • Miscarriages of Justice Organisation Annual Report 2010-11 • Coping Strategies and Enduring Psychological Trauma in Some Miscarriages of Justice Victims by Norman Parker • Experts Response : Dr Adrian Grounds, Iain Stephens Dr Paul Miller • Clients Response on Mental Health Questionnaire 3 Mental Health Strategy for Scotland Respondent Information Form M.OJ.O. Response ­ Mental Health Strategy for Scotland – A Consultation What is available for the trauma inflicted upon the Wrongfully Convicted? Introduction It was in 1994, 3 years after his release, when I first met Paddy Joe Hill of the Birmingham Six. I had met him twice briefly before this point, but it wasn’t until that fateful day on the 8th October 1994, when I really met him, and asked the question “how’s life”. His reply shocked me, he started telling me about his breakdowns, his uncontrollable crying, not going out during the day because of the noise, sleeping in one room in his house, how he didn’t fit in out here. I kept saying, “but you must have got help, your campaign was enormous, worldwide, they must have given you some help”. I was shocked to think that someone who had spent decades wrongfully inside UK prisons, would be released without any psychological help to re‐adjust. I wasn’t a psychologist, psychiatrist or counsellor, but even I knew back then that long‐term wrongful incarceration would weigh heavy on the mind.
    [Show full text]
  • Proved Innocent: the Story of Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four (Gerry Conlon) – Adapted: Books to Movies (1990) (Gerry Conlon)
    Proved Innocent: The Story of Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four (Gerry Conlon) – Adapted: Books to Movies (1990) (Gerry Conlon) QUICK THOUGHTS ● Phil Svitek ● Marisa Serafini AUTHOR BACKGROUND (Gerry Conlon) ● Gerry Conlon was born in Belfast in 1954 and grew up in the impoverished but ​ ​ close-knit community of the Lower Falls Road ● He described his childhood as happy ● His father was Giuseppe Conlon, a factory worker, and his mother was Sarah Conlon, a hospital cleaner ● In 1974, at age 20, Conlon went to England to seek work and to escape the everyday violence he was encountering on the streets of Belfast ● In November 1974, the then 20-year-old was arrested for the Guildford pub bombings ● After he was convicted, he moved between English prisons 22 times ● Spent five and a half years in solitary confinement ● Gerry Conlon was released from prison on 19th October 1989 ○ Conlon spent the best part of £120,000 in six weeks on crack cocaine as he struggled to come to terms with life outside prison. ○ After his release, Conlon suffered two nervous breakdowns and attempted suicide ● In the Name of the Son: The Gerry Conlon Story delves into the battles faced by ​ the west Belfast man following his release from prison after he was falsely convicted, written by childhood friend Richard O’Rawe ● Received the cash for the 1993 hit film In the Name of the Father, in which he was played by Daniel Day-Lewis. He forked out up to £10,000 a day on drugs and giving handouts to people he viewed as needy.
    [Show full text]
  • Miscarriages of Justice and Exceptional Procedures in the 'War
    Miscarriages of Justice and Exceptional Procedures in the ‘War against Terrorism’ CEPS Special Report/September 2008 Emmanuel-Pierre Guittet Abstract The object of this paper is to question the logic of generalised suspicion in indictment and detention procedures in the context of the war on terrorism, in order to understand the legal oscillation between resistance and deference to intelligence data in the judgment of terrorist acts. To illustrate these various forms of judicial resistance/deference, we closely examine three cases of judicial abuse in the fight against terrorism, corresponding to three different chronological and socio-political moments: the ‘Guildford Four’ in Northern Ireland (1974), the judicial condemnation and constitutional ban of Batasuna, the Basque nationalist party in Spain (2002) and the Maher Arar case in Canada (2002). Behind the screen of an elastic conception of public security, the primacy of an intelligence-based rationale over the judicial process results in tensions between the attribution of guilt and the rendering of justice that distort classical judicial procedures and the principle of a fair trial. Moreover, such tensions eventually legitimise proactive and preventive strategies that lead to condemnation through allegations of terrorism rather than proof. This work was prepared as part of the EU–Canada project - The Changing Landscape of Justice and Home Affairs Cooperation in the European Union and EU-Canada Relations – funded by the European Commission, Directorate-General for External Relations, Relations with the US and Canada. This project assesses the relations between the European Union (EU) and Canada in the area of Justice and Home Affairs (JHA). It aims at facilitating a better understanding of the concepts, nature, implications and future prospects related to the Europeanization of JHA in the EU, as well as its role and dilemmas in the context of EU- Canada relations.
    [Show full text]
  • INUK Innocence Project First Steps
    Setting up an Innocence Project – First Steps The following outlines the ‘first steps’ in setting up a member innocence project and the things that students can do to put the foundations of their innocence projects in place in readiness for undertaking live client casework. Part One: Getting the foundations in place Basic Knowledge Ensure that the basic information about INUK is understood by student caseworkers. For instance, they need to know the details of the INUK caseworking protocols, the INUK Student Handbook and, crucially, the Client Care Letter (all available in the INUK Innocence Projects’ Starter Pack) so that they know the basics about what the INUK is, what an innocence project is and the operational practices for member innocence projects. All student caseworkers need to be familiar with the workings of the CCRC (or the SCCRC for member innocence projects in Scotland). A good starting point is the CCRC/SCCRC website, which links to the key statutes that govern its operations. Students may also want to read the critical analyses on the limitations of the CCRC contained in: Naughton, M. (2009) (Editor) The Criminal Cases Review Commission: Hope for the Innocent?, Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. This book is the product of the Inaugural Innocence Network UK (INUK) Symposium that was held on the 10th Anniversary of the establishment of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), 31 March 2007, University of Bristol. It brings together critical perspectives on the operations of the CCRC from victim-support workers, practitioners and academics from the UK, the United States and Canada in terms of its limitations to deal with claims of innocence.
    [Show full text]
  • Sample Chapter
    Copyright material – 9780230216914 © Michael Naughton 2013 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2013 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of St Martin’s Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world. Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries ISBN: 978–0–230–21690–7 hardback ISBN: 978–0–230–21691–4 paperback This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing- processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin.
    [Show full text]
  • In the Name of the Father Pdf, Epub, Ebook
    IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Gerri Hill | 280 pages | 23 Nov 2007 | BELLA BOOKS | 9781594931086 | English | Ferndale, MI, United States In the Name of the Father PDF Book Films directed by Jim Sheridan. Best Supporting Actor. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. So in some ways he is not innocent. The Guildford Four were framed; there seems to be no doubt about that. Granny Conlon Marie Jones Detective Rachael Dowling Quotes Gerry Conlon : I'll be older than you when I get out of this place. The film received very positive reviews from most critics. A former friend fingers him to the police, and he's snatched from his bed in a predawn raid - along with his astonished father, who had nothing to do with anything, and also eventually finds himself serving a life sentence. Visit our What to Watch page. Points about the prison years and the fight for an appeal are made too painstakingly, and there is much dialog when a little would have done. Retrieved 19 July Hidden categories: Articles containing French- language text. Danny Frankie McCafferty Giuseppe Conlon : I'm not talking to you. Extra uncredited Trevor Stynes Rated R For Profanity and Violence. This leads to the overturning of the verdict and immediate release of the Guildford Four. Prisoner Bernard Pellegrinetti Top Rated Movies Nominated for 7 Oscars. My best movies. What was Hill doing in Southampton? Well, no. Best Theatrical Motion Picture. I had the feeling that if 10 or 12 minutes had been edited from the film, from the scenes behind bars, that would have made a big difference.
    [Show full text]
  • Sean O'mahony Papers
    Leabharlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann National Library of Ireland Collection List No. 130 Sean O’Mahony Papers (MSS 44,025 - 44,310) (Accession No. 6,148) Papers collected by Sean O’Mahony relating to Irish history and various republican and nationalist movements (1689-2005) with an emphasis on the troubles in Northern Ireland and the contemporary Irish republican movement, 1969-2005. Compiled by Ciara Kerrigan, Assistant Keeper I and Harriet Wheelock, Archival Studentship, 2008 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABBREVIATIONS......................................................................................................7 INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................8 Sean O’Mahony .........................................................................................................8 The Irish Republican Movement ...............................................................................8 The papers..................................................................................................................9 Arrangement ............................................................................................................10 Assessment...............................................................................................................10 Bibliography ............................................................................................................11 PART ONE I. PRE-1916 REPUBLICANISM..............................................................................12
    [Show full text]
  • The Wrongful Imprisonment of the Guildford Four: Who Bears the Blame?
    1 TARA SCHOELLER – BURKE THE WRONGFUL IMPRISONMENT OF THE GUILDFORD FOUR: WHO BEARS THE BLAME? Submitted for the LLB (Honours) Degree Faculty of Law Victoria University of Wellington 2013 2 Contents Page: I Introduction ……………………………………………………………………… 3 II Historical Context …………………......………………………………………... 3 A The Bombings …………………………………………………………………. 3 B ‘The Guildford Four’ ………………………………………………………….. 4 III The Legislature ………………………………………………………….……….. 6 A The Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1974 …………...…. 6 1 Origins of the Act …………………………………………………………….. 6 2 The role of section 7 …………………………………………………….......... 8 IV The Executive …………………………………………………………………….. 9 A The Police ……………………………………………………………………… 9 1 Bullying interrogations ……………………………………………………... 10 2 Falsified statements …………………………………………………............. 12 3 Concealed alibi evidence ……………………………………………...…….. 12 4 Explanations: Bad apples or systems failure? ………………………..…...… 13 B The Role of Government: A Political Injustice? ……………………………….... 14 V The Judiciary ………………………………………………………………….…. 15 A The Trial ……………………………………………………………………….. 15 1 The Prosecution …………………………………………………………….... 15 2 The Defence ………………………………………………….……….…….... 15 3 Evidence ……………………………………………………………….……... 16 4 The Judge ……………………………………………………….…………..... 17 B The Appeal System … ………………………………………………...……….. 18 1 The 1977 Appeal ………………….……………………………………….… 18 2 Release in 1989 ………………………………………………………………. 21 VI The Media and Public Perceptions …………………………………………....…. 23 VII Conclusions ……………………………………………………………………....
    [Show full text]