Coroner recuses himself from Noah Donohoe inquest

Noah Donohoe was found dead in a storm drain in north Belfast in June 2020

A senior coroner has recused himself from the inquest into the death of Noah Donohoe.

Joe McCrisken had been in charge of the pre-inquest proceedings over the past number of years.

In a statement to BBC News NI, the Lady Chief Justice's Office has confirmed that he "will not be hearing this inquest".

The body of the 14-year-old schoolboy was found in a storm drain in north Belfast in June 2020, almost a week after he went missing. A post-mortem examination found he died as a result of drowning.

Joe McCrisken had been in charge of the pre-inquest proceedings

In a social media post, a law firm representing the teenager’s family said: "On behalf of Fiona Donohoe [Noah Donohoe's mother], we confirm that the senior coroner will no longer preside over Noah’s inquest proceedings."

The message added that "arrangements are being made for the inquest and all future pre-inquest hearings to be heard before a new coroner".

The Lady Chief Justice's Office said the inquest would be listed before another coroner with details being confirmed in due course.

The statement added: "To protect the administration of justice and to guard against further prejudicial material being published which might impact negatively on the integrity of the jury process, the coroner has ordered that no details of the content and reasoning of the recusal decision be published in any publication of any sort without further order of the court."

The order has been made under section 4(2) of the Contempt of Court Act 1981.

The statement said this restriction was pending the opportunity for all the properly interested persons (PIPs) to comment upon the issue and any publication in breach of this order may constitute a contempt of court.

The prohibition on publication of the recusal decision will be reviewed when the PIPs have commented.