Daniel Hegarty: Shot boy's family 'angry and disgusted' at PPS

Margaret Brady (left), along with her husband Hugh and sister Catherine, want to meet the PPS

The family of a boy who was killed in Londonderry in 1972 has criticised the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) for not being in contact since a decision not to prosecute the soldier who shot him was quashed.

Daniel Hegarty was 15 when he was shot twice in the head.

In July 2021 the PPS announced it was dropping the case against the veteran known as Soldier B.

That decision was quashed by the Court of Appeal in June.

Daniel's sister Margaret Brady told BBC News NI that weeks on from the ruling her family did not know what was happening.

The PPS stated in June that it would be taking "necessary time to consider the full detail of the written judgement" and it was "committed to deciding next steps and updating the family directly at the earliest opportunity".

Ms Brady said her legal representatives had now written to the PPS to request an update.

"We have never heard anything from them and I want to know why," she continued.

"I feel angry and disgusted that they are treating us an afterthought, as if we are nothing."

The family's legal letter to the PPS requested the organisation confirm its exact position on the next steps.

Daniel Hegarty was shot dead by a soldier in 1972

Ms Brady said the lack of communication was causing hurt and mistrust.

"They would need to stop doing this," she said.

"It feels like stalling and it really hurts families like mine. There's no respect."

Ms Brady said trust had been broken and she wanted to meet the PPS "as soon as possible".

"We need peace of mind and justice," she said.

Anniversary

Monday marked the 51st anniversary of Daniel's killing.

In 2022 a plaque was unveiled in Derry in his memory, close to where he was shot in Creggan Heights.

Daniel, who was a labourer, was shot during Operation Motorman, the name given to a military operation by the Army to reclaim "no-go areas" set up by republican paramilitaries in towns and cities in Northern Ireland.

Daniel's cousin Christopher Hegarty, who was 16 at the time, was wounded in the same incident.

In 2011 an inquest jury unanimously found Daniel posed no risk and had been shot without warning.

An initial inquest had been held in 1973 and recorded an open verdict.

The second inquest was ordered by the Northern Ireland attorney general in 2009 after an examination by police detectives in the Historical Enquiries Team.

In 2007 the UK government apologised to the Hegarty family for describing Daniel as a terrorist.

In a statement to BBC News NI, the PPS said: "The divisional court gave judgment on 29 June 2023.

"However, the final order of the court was to be the subject of further representations by the parties."

It said had been "ongoing contact" between the PPS and representatives of the family "regarding the final order of the court".

"The PPS is fully committed to engaging further with the Hegarty family when the litigation has finally concluded," a spokesperson added.

In response to that, a solicitor for the family said: "In the interests of justice and everyone involved in this long running case with all its legal history there is absolutely no technical reason why the PPS should not simply tell the family at this sensitive time when the prosecution of Soldier B will continue."

You can hear the interview with Margaret Brady in full on BBC Radio Foyle's The North West Today.