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Former prisoner’s conviction quashed
07 April 2001 --
A LANDMARK hearing which overturned the conviction of a former prisoner could
pave the way for similar applications. Gerard Magee (36) of Niblock Road,
Antrim, was convicted in 1990 of a string of offences including conspiracy to
murder and cause an explosion. He served half of a 20–year sentence, being
released under the terms of the Good Friday agreement. But at the court of
appeal in Belfast yesterday the convictions against the former prisoner were
quashed. The ruling came after the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled
that the British government was wrong to hold Mr Magee for 48 hours without
access to a solicitor. In a reserved judgment the Lord Chief Justice Sir Robert
Carswell recalled that Mr Magee claimed at his trial that his confession was the
result of ill–treatment by the RUC, but it was rejected by the judge at the
time. The Lord Chief Justice referred to the ruling of the ECHR which concluded
that the denial of access to a solicitor and the conditions of Castlereagh
Holding Centre were a violation of the convention. He said: “We consider that we
would not be justified in concluding that the conviction was safe in the light
of this finding. “If other cases come before us concerning admissions made in
Castlereagh by persons whose access to legal advice was deferred, we shall take
the ECHR’s decision in the present case into account.” Mr Magee, who was
represented by solicitors Madden and Finucane, told of his delight at the
outcome. “I am absolutely delighted with the judgment. It is the end result of a
long legal process,” he said. “Many people were abused in Castlereagh and Gough
barracks. I do hope that this will lead to many opportunities for people to seek
legal redress.” Patricia Coyle, of Madden and Finucane, said: “This is an
important judgement, not only for Gerard, but for others who have been convicted
by Diplock courts, either wholly or substantially, on alleged confession
evidence extracted under the regimes of Castlereagh and Gough barracks without
access to legal advice.” Sinn Fein’s Alex Maskey also welcomed the ruling. “The
judgment is clear, the RUC violated the European Convention on Human Rights in
order to achieve miscarriage of justice.”
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