The Way the Trial of a Former Soldier Regarding Bloody Sunday Ended in Not Guilty Verdict
Sunday 30 January 1972 stands as among the most deadly – and consequential – days throughout thirty years of violence in this area.
Within the community where it happened – the legacy of Bloody Sunday are painted on the walls and seared in people's minds.
A civil rights march was held on a chilly yet clear period in the city.
The protest was a protest against the system of imprisonment without charges – detaining individuals without trial – which had been put in place following an extended period of unrest.
Troops from the Parachute Regiment killed multiple civilians in the neighborhood – which was, and still is, a predominantly republican area.
A particular photograph became particularly memorable.
Pictures showed a religious figure, Fr Edward Daly, waving a bloodied cloth while attempting to protect a assembly carrying a young man, the injured teenager, who had been killed.
News camera operators recorded much footage on the day.
Historical records contains the priest informing a journalist that soldiers "just seemed to discharge weapons randomly" and he was "completely sure" that there was no justification for the shooting.
This account of the incident was rejected by the initial investigation.
The Widgery Tribunal determined the soldiers had been fired upon initially.
Throughout the negotiation period, Tony Blair's government commissioned a fresh examination, in response to advocacy by surviving kin, who said the initial inquiry had been a whitewash.
That year, the conclusion by the investigation said that on balance, the paratroopers had fired first and that not one of the individuals had been armed.
The contemporary government leader, the Prime Minister, expressed regret in the government chamber – stating fatalities were "unjustified and inexcusable."
Authorities started to investigate the events.
A military veteran, referred to as Soldier F, was prosecuted for homicide.
He was charged concerning the fatalities of the first individual, twenty-two, and 26-year-old William McKinney.
Soldier F was also accused of seeking to harm several people, other civilians, Joe Mahon, Michael Quinn, and an unidentified individual.
There is a legal order protecting the soldier's anonymity, which his legal team have claimed is essential because he is at risk of attack.
He testified the investigation that he had only fired at individuals who were armed.
The statement was rejected in the official findings.
Information from the investigation could not be used straightforwardly as proof in the court case.
During the trial, the veteran was hidden from public using a privacy screen.
He addressed the court for the initial occasion in the proceedings at a proceeding in that month, to reply "innocent" when the accusations were read.
Family members of the victims on the incident travelled from Londonderry to the courthouse every day of the case.
One relative, whose brother Michael was fatally wounded, said they were aware that attending the case would be difficult.
"I can see the events in my memory," the relative said, as we examined the key areas discussed in the proceedings – from the street, where Michael was shot dead, to the adjoining Glenfada Park, where James Wray and William McKinney were fatally wounded.
"It even takes me back to where I was that day.
"I assisted with Michael and lay him in the medical transport.
"I relived every moment during the proceedings.
"Despite enduring all that – it's still valuable for me."