Why won’t suspected terrorist John Downey be tried?

The Hallett Review was published yesterday. This is the review ordered by the Prime Minister in February after the collapse of the trial of John Downey. Readers will remember that Downey was about to face trial over the 1982 Hyde Park bombing – in which four British soldiers were murdered – when his lawyers produced a letter from the Police Service of Northern Ireland saying that Downey was not being sought for any offences. This opened up the remarkable discovery that unbeknown to most people involved in the political process in Northern Ireland: that such ‘amnesty letters’ had been sent to almost 200 ‘on-the-runs’ (people being sought for terrorism offences who had not yet faced trial). The people given these letters of assurance were all Republicans.

The Hallett review slightly clears up certain things. For instance it says that the letters themselves, while not a secret, were part of a ‘below-the-radar’ deal between the Labour government and Sinn Fein. It says that the arrangement was ‘not unlawful’ but acknowledges it was flawed. But it still leaves one vast and gaping problem. Why can John Downey not now be tried for the murder of four British soldiers?

I have been asking around the various departments and remain surprised by the decision. The Downey trial was stayed because there was deemed to be an abuse of process.

The Judge (Mr Justice Sweeney) stayed the prosecution as a result of the production of the letter and while aware that the letter contained an error (the PSNI said that Downey would not be pursued for offences carried out in Northern Ireland or on the mainland – this latter point being incorrect). Now some of the business of the letters has come to light, and the specific mistake made by the PSNI has been reconfirmed.