The President of the Brehon Law Society of New York, Deirdre Feerick, released a statement in response to the developments in the case of British Collusion at the Loughinisland Massacre.
John Finucane MP said about the case, “The Investigatory Powers Tribunal has today found that police illegally targeted journalists Trevor Birney & Barry McCaffrey, & breached their human rights.
“This is a resounding victory for press freedom & human rights.
“As these investigative journalists carried out their job, including assisting victims & families, police forces & state bodies from across these islands sought to criminalise them for doing so.
“The tribunal found that over 300 journalists & 500 lawyers were illegally spied on by the PSNI.
“I commend Trevor & Barry for taking & winning this courageous case. Journalism is not a crime.”
The Brehon Law Society of New York statement in full:
December 17, 2024 – New York City
In June 1994, loyalist gunmen shot dead six innocent people in a bar in Loughinisland, Co. Down. From the beginning, there were grounds to believe that the gunmen were acting in collusion with British government security forces.
Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey are journalists in Northern Ireland who produced the documentary “No Stone Unturned” that was released here in New York in 2017. The documentary researched the circumstances of the murder, including the subsequent cover up by the police. The documentary was nominated for the “Outstanding Investigative Documentary” at the Emmys.
On August 18, 2018, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) arrested Birney and McCaffrey after raiding their homes and businesses. The courts later held that the actions of the PSNI were unlawful and that the request for a search warrant “fell woefully short of the standard required to ensure that the hearing was fair”.
In 2019, Birney and McCaffrey sued the PSNI and related government agencies, alleging violations of human rights. The lawsuit was litigated through the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, a judge-only tribunal that hears complaints and allegations of human rights violations by British police forces engaged in spying.
Through the course of the lawsuit, Birney and McCaffrey learned about the extent of the British meddling. The British security forces had begun spying on McCaffrey and another journalist years before the documentary. The PSNI had farmed out its spying work to police agencies in England. Over 4,000 text messages bad been intercepted. Even an official at the Police Ombudsman of Northern Ireland was a spying victim.
Today, the Investigatory Powers Tribunal ruled that the defendants had unlawfully spied on McCaffrey and Birney. It was the first time that the Tribunal has ordered a defendant police agency to pay damages. We congratulate Birney and McCaffrey, together with their legal teams.
The time and resources spent by British security agencies on the cover up and its cover up of the cover up is not lost on us. It questions the motivations of senior operatives in the PSNI and their ability to act impartially across the community.
Deirdre Feerick
President, Brehon Law Society of New York
The Brehon Law Society came into existence in 1978. The organization takes its name from the body of ancient Celtic law that defined and governed legal relationships on the island of Ireland. From earliest times. Brehon Law was distinguished by its egalitarianism and by its respect for fundamental rights and liberties.
Inspired by the strongly humanitarian tradition embodied in the Brehon law, the members of the Brehon Law Society strive to use their talents to protect, to defend, and to extend human rights, principally – but not exclusively – in Northern Ireland.
In service of this end, the law society takes as its reference points three landmark legal documents of immense significance: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Together, these documents articulate the aspirations of the member nations of the United Nations.
You can learn more on their website here: https://brehon-law-society.com/
