Friday, March 15, 2002

Leave granted for DPP challenge The family of a Derry teenager shot dead by British troops in 1972 was granted leave in the High Court in Belfast on Wednesday to judicially review the decision not to prosecute the soldiers involved. Manus Deery (15) was shot dead by a sniper firing from the city walls on 19 May 1972. The then Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) ruled that no crime had been committed, with the result that the legality of the killing was never tested in court. Following an historic ruling of the European Court of Human Rights last year, the Pat Finucane Centre and nine Derry families wrote letters to the DPP challenging him to abide by the judgement, which held that families must be informed of the reasons why no prosecutions were undertaken. 7:10:49 AM