In the matter of an inquest into the deaths of Lawrence Joesph McNally, Anthony Patrick Doris and Michael James Ryan (Open ruling on applications for live link, Anonymity and screening of Military witnesses)
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Judge | Humphreys J |
| Judgment Date | 29 September 2022 |
| Neutral Citation | [2022] NICoroner 8 |
| Date | 29 September 2022 |
| Court | Coroners Court (NI) |
1
Neutral Citation No: 2022 NICoroner 8
Judgment: approved by the court for handing down
(subject to editorial corrections)*
Ref: HUM11955
Delivered: 29/09/2022
IN THE CORONER’S COURT IN NORTHERN IRELAND
___________
IN THE MATTER OF AN INQUEST INTO THE DEATHS OF
LAWRENCE JOSEPH McNALLY, ANTHONY PATRICK DORIS AND
MICHAEL JAMES RYAN
___________
OPEN RULING ON APPLICATIONS FOR LIVE LINK, ANONYMITY AND
SCREENING OF MILITARY WITNESSES
___________
HUMPHREYS J
Introduction
[1] In a previous ruling, I upheld the claim for Public Interest Immunity (‘PII’)
with the exception of the material relating to the location of Soldier H. I found that
disclosure of the names of military witnesses would give rise to a real risk of serious
harm to the public interest and, having carried out the balancing exercise, this risk
outweighed any harm caused to the administration of justice.
[2] It therefore follows that the military witnesses are entitled to anonymity in the
course of the inquest proceedings. I invited further submissions on other special
measures which were necessary or proportionate in order to protect their identities.
[3] Two of the military witnesses, Soldier M and Solider N, intend to attend the
inquest in person to give evidence. The following military witnesses, namely
Soldiers A, B, D, E, G, H, J, K, L, O, P, Q, S, V, W, X, Y, Z, AA, AB, AD, and P1, have
made applications for their evidence to be taken via a live link. It is noted that there
remains an outstanding excusal application in respect of Solider F. These
applications are advanced pursuant to the provisions of the Coronavirus Act 2020
and/or the court’s general case management powers.
The Statutory Provisions
[4] Section 57 of the Coronavirus Act 2020 (‘the 2020 Act’) provides that Schedule
27 governs the use of live links in courts in Northern Ireland, including inquest
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