In the matter of an inquest touching upon the death of Hugh Gerard Coney (Ruling on whether section 18(1)(b) of the Coroners Act (Northern Ireland) 1959 applies to the inquest).
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Judge | Mrs Toal |
| Judgment Date | 18 April 2023 |
| Neutral Citation | [2023] NICoroner 7 |
| Date | 18 April 2023 |
| Court | Coroners Court (NI) |
1
Neutral Citation No: [2023] NICoroner 7
Judgment: approved by the court for handing down
(subject to editorial corrections)*
Ref: [2023] NICoroner 7
Delivered: 18/04/2023
IN THE CORONERS COURT IN NORTHERN IRELAND
__________
BEFORE THE CORONER OF NORTHERN IRELAND
ANNE-LOUISE TOAL
__________
IN THE MATTER OF AN INQUEST TOUCHING UPON THE DEATH OF
HUGH GERARD CONEY
__________
RULING ON WHETHER SECTION 18(1)(b) OF THE CORONERS ACT
(NORTHERN IRELAND) 1959 APPLIES TO THE INQUEST
__________
Introduction
[1] An issue has been raised on behalf of the Northern Ireland Prison Service
(NIPS) as to whether section 18(1)(b) of the Coroners Act (Northern Ireland) 1959
(“the 1959 Act”) applies to the above inquest.
[2] The deceased, a detainee at the Maze/Long Kesh internment camp, died on
6 November 1974, as a result of injuries he received when he was struck by a bullet
whilst attempting to escape with a number of other detainees. This court will
examine the circumstances of his death in detail and will look at, amongst other
issues, whether the firing of any bullet was justified.
[3] This inquest was opened on 27 February 2023 and oral evidence was heard
from two detainees who had also attempted to escape at the same time as the
deceased, together with the next-of-kin and a civil engineer expert as to the layout of
the site.
[4] After hearing this evidence, I was alerted to the fact that the NIPS would be
seeking to raise the issue of whether there was reason to suspect the death occurred
whilst the deceased was in prison. If there is such a reason to suspect the death
occurred whilst the deceased was in prison, this would necessitate the inquest being
heard by a jury. As such, the inquest was adjourned to deal with the issue by way of
written submissions (which were received on 20 March 2023) and oral submissions
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