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Northern Ireland Billy Wright Inquiry
10th July 2009
A team from the Faculty of Advocates, including Ampersand’s Eugene Creally, has successfully completed the evidence hearings in Northern Ireland's long-running Billy Wright Inquiry. With 152 days of witness testimony behind them, the team returned to Edinburgh to prepare final submissions.
Loyalist Volunteer Force leader Billy Wright, 37, was gunned down by Republican prisoners in HM Prison Maze, Co Down, on 27 December 1997. Allegations of state collusion in the murder immediately sprang up. The deceased's father David Wright led an unrelenting campaign for a public inquiry.
An independent review by retired Canadian judge Hon. Peter Cory found 'sufficient evidence' of collusion to justify a public inquiry. On 16 November 2004 the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland appointed Scottish judge Lord MacLean to chair an inquiry into Billy Wright's murder.
Leading Counsel to the Inquiry Angus Stewart QC, formerly Keeper of the Advocates Library and Senior Advocate Depute, took over from Derek Batchelor QC who left the Inquiry in June 2008. Murdo Macleod QC, also one-time Senior Advocate Depute, has been with the Inquiry continuously since April 2005. Eugene Creally, formerly Clerk of Faculty, joined the Inquiry in April 2005 but returned to practice in Parliament House for a spell in 2008.
A major part of the Inquiry's task has been sifting hundreds of thousands of pages of Prison Service, Army, Special Branch and MI5 papers. Over 100,000 pages have been lodged as exhibits. There have been 181 witnesses, 41 of whom were granted anonymity, ciphered and screened. One was offered voice distortion.
The most highly sensitive security material has been dealt with in twelve closed sessions. Significant witnesses have included Northern Ireland First Minister, Peter Robinson, former heads of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, Sir Hugh Annesley and Sir Ronnie Flanagan, former Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Lord Stevens, who has been leading inquiries into alleged collusion in Northern Ireland for the past twenty years, former Security Ministers Sir John Wheeler and Adam Ingram and a number of ex-Maze prisoners.
Also playing a role were advocates Lisa Gillespie and Amber Galbraith who assisted with preparation for the oral hearings. Amber has already returned to practice and Lisa is moving to the post of Law Clerk to the Lord Justice-Clerk.
Hearings take place at Banbridge, County Down and the Inquiry legal team returned to County Down at the end of June to present oral submissions. Murdo Macleod QC and Eugene Creally plan to return to practice in Edinburgh soon after the new session begins in September 2009.
Angus Stewart QC will continue with the Inquiry during the report-writing process.
Members of the Billy Wright Inquiry Panel are the Rt Hon Lord MacLean (Chair), Professor Andrew Coyle, a renowned expert on prison studies, and the Rt Rev John Oliver, a former Bishop of Hereford.
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