Gerry Kelly libel case against journalist thrown out

Gerry Kelly claimed comments made by Malachi O'Doherty gravely damaged his reputation

A court has thrown out a libel case brought by Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly.

Mr Kelly had sought damages over two radio interviews given by writer Malachi O'Doherty, in which he stated Mr Kelly had shot a prison officer during the Maze escape in 1983.

The High Court in Belfast struck out Mr Kelly's case, describing it as "scandalous, frivolous and vexatious".

Mr Kelly said the ruling, published on Monday, was a "substantive judgement," which he would study with his lawyer.

Mr Kelly was one of 38 IRA prisoners who escaped from the Maze prison near Lisburn.

During the break-out, prison officer John Adams was shot in the head.

Mr Kelly has never admitted shooting him and was found not guilty at a trial in 1987.

Mr Kelly had claimed Dr O'Doherty's comments, made in 2019, had gravely damaged his reputation and brought his standing as an MLA into disrepute.

However, Dr O'Doherty pointed out that the prison officer had claimed Mr Kelly fired the shot.

He also argued there was no damage to Mr Kelly's reputation, as he had served prison sentences for the 1973 Old Bailey bombings and he is someone publicly identified as a former IRA member.

Mr Kelly has also written books which deal with the escape, although they conceal who fired the shot.

In the ruling, Master Evan Bell stated: "What Mr Kelly has written in his books, in my view, makes it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for him to rebut the argument that he was not a joint tortfeasor in respect of the battery.

"Even if one accepts Mr Kelly has not explicitly admitted pulling the trigger, the content of his books appears to make Mr Kelly civilly liable, on the balance of probabilities, for the shooting of Mr Adams.

"In the light of that, these defamation proceedings against Dr O'Doherty are completely untenable.

"For that reason the court strikes them out on the basis that they are scandalous, frivolous and vexatious."

Malachi O'Doherty is a freelance writer and broadcaster based in Belfast

'Chilling impact on journalists'

The ruling went on to characterise Mr Kelly's case as what is known as a Slapp action - Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation.

It stated that on balance, the proceedings "were initiated not for the genuine purposes of vindicating a reputation injured by defamatory statements, but rather for the purpose of stifling the voices of Mr Kelly's troublesome critics".

Speaking to the BBC's Evening Extra programme, Malachi O'Doherty said he did not know what the costs would have amounted to if he had lost the case, but he said the law of defamation was a "high stakes" business.

"I'm not a rich man. I do own my house - I would have been liable potentially to lose my house," the freelance journalist said.

"The other possibility was that I would have lost all credibility as a journalist by conceding."

He welcomed the fact the court had recognised Mr Kelly's action as a so-called SLAPP case.

"The danger is that journalists may be wary of saying anything critical about Sinn Féin members because of the frequency with which writs are flying.

"I would urge people not to be intimidated."

The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) has also welcomed the ruling.

Its assistant general secretary, Séamus Dooley, described it as "extremely significant" in the context of concern over the use of Slapp lawsuits against journalists.

In a statement, Mr Dooley said Mr Kelly's case had no "realistic prospect of success" but yet "the shadow of defamation proceedings has loomed over Malachi O'Doherty" since 2020.

"Such threats have a chilling impact on journalists and journalism. The unambiguous language used in the determination should give those intent on using SLAPPs pause for thought," he added.