New inquest to be held into 1972 fatal army shooting of father-of-four
- Published
Father-of-four Thomas Burns, 32, was killed as he left a social club in north Belfast in 1972
The Northern Ireland Attorney General has directed that a new inquest be held into the fatal shooting of a man by the army 50 years ago.
Father-of-four Thomas Burns, 32, was killed as he left a social club in north Belfast in 1972.
Mr Burns, a Catholic, had served in the Royal Navy for 10 years.
His daughter Patricia said: "This inquest means so much to us. This is a big step towards justice."
The family have long campaigned for a fresh inquest after new evidence was provided by ex-soldiers 10 years ago.
The evidence undermined the reliability of military statements given to the original inquest in 1973.
Although the then Attorney General John Larkin accepted it had been wrong to find a verdict of misadventure, he refused a fresh inquest in 2019.
Mr Burns's family then embarked upon a court battle which they won last year.
Now Mr Larkin's successor as Attorney General, Brenda King, has granted the family their wish.
'We remain hopeful'
In a letter to their lawyers, Ms King set out five reasons for her decision, including fresh military evidence and a new statement from a civilian witness.
Mr Burns was hit in the chest by a soldier who opened fire from a watch tower, claiming to have seen a gunman.
His daughter Patricia, who was aged six at the time of the shooting, added: "The army killed an innocent man for no reason and deprived me and my brothers of our father at a very young age.
"We remain hopeful of state accountability for our father's killing."
However, the decision could be affected by the government's legacy bill which, if passed, would ban troubles-related inquests being held after a cut-off point in the near future.
The Burns family have been supported in their campaign by Relatives for Justice.
They said they were "delighted" with the decision to order a new inquest and labelled the government legacy legislation "disgraceful".