NO INCREASE IN COMPENSATION FOR OMAGH FAMILIES
No increase in compensation for Omagh families
BY ALAN RODGERS
THERE will be no increase from the �1.6 million damages awarded to the 12 Omagh families who took the civil case against the four men held liable for the 1998 bomb atrocity.
Lord Justice Malachy Higgins made the ruling in the appeal court hearing of the quartet who had been held liable for the bombing. The appeal was heard by Lord Justice Higgins, Lord Justice Girvan and Lord Justice Coghlin.
The judgement has also directed a retrial of the claims against Colm Murphy, while an appeal by Seamus Daly was upheld. Real IRA leader, Michael McDevitt and Liam Campbell both lost their appeals.
In the judgement, Lord Justice Higgins questioned evidence surrounding e-mails from a US undercover agent while overturning the judgement on Murphy.
"The paucity of e-mail evidence, the lack of consistency in the e-mails or at least ambiguity, the possibility of initials referring to someone other than Murphy and the fact that they refer on occasions to double hearsay considerable weakened e-mails as evidence," he said.
In relation to Seamus Daly, the appeal judges were not convinced that the trial judge would inevitably have reached the same conclusion about liability if a misdirection had not been heard.
Dismissing the appeal by Liam Campbell, the judgement stated that there was cogent evidence that he was a member of the Real IRA Army Council at the time of the Omagh Bomb and held an important leadership position then and subsequently.
He concluded that the case against Campbell was overwhelming and that linking the pieces of evidence together, the judge was justified in reaching the conclusion which he did.
None of the men being sued has the capacity to pay out compensation on a large-scale and from the start the Omagh families have made clear that the civil action was a vehicle for putting as much information as possible into the public domain.
The Real IRA organisation was found in 2009, by Lord Justice Morgan, to have been liable for the bomb, who added that he was satisfied that 'those involved in the planning, preparation, planting and detonation of the bomb recognised the likelihood of serious injury or death from its detonation but decided to take that risk.'
BY ALAN RODGERS
THERE will be no increase from the �1.6 million damages awarded to the 12 Omagh families who took the civil case against the four men held liable for the 1998 bomb atrocity.
Lord Justice Malachy Higgins made the ruling in the appeal court hearing of the quartet who had been held liable for the bombing. The appeal was heard by Lord Justice Higgins, Lord Justice Girvan and Lord Justice Coghlin.
The judgement has also directed a retrial of the claims against Colm Murphy, while an appeal by Seamus Daly was upheld. Real IRA leader, Michael McDevitt and Liam Campbell both lost their appeals.
In the judgement, Lord Justice Higgins questioned evidence surrounding e-mails from a US undercover agent while overturning the judgement on Murphy.
"The paucity of e-mail evidence, the lack of consistency in the e-mails or at least ambiguity, the possibility of initials referring to someone other than Murphy and the fact that they refer on occasions to double hearsay considerable weakened e-mails as evidence," he said.
In relation to Seamus Daly, the appeal judges were not convinced that the trial judge would inevitably have reached the same conclusion about liability if a misdirection had not been heard.
Dismissing the appeal by Liam Campbell, the judgement stated that there was cogent evidence that he was a member of the Real IRA Army Council at the time of the Omagh Bomb and held an important leadership position then and subsequently.
He concluded that the case against Campbell was overwhelming and that linking the pieces of evidence together, the judge was justified in reaching the conclusion which he did.
None of the men being sued has the capacity to pay out compensation on a large-scale and from the start the Omagh families have made clear that the civil action was a vehicle for putting as much information as possible into the public domain.
The Real IRA organisation was found in 2009, by Lord Justice Morgan, to have been liable for the bomb, who added that he was satisfied that 'those involved in the planning, preparation, planting and detonation of the bomb recognised the likelihood of serious injury or death from its detonation but decided to take that risk.'
Further Information
Publisher: TYRONE HERALD
Ref: TYH/107
Published Date: 11-Jul-11
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