Coroner faces legal battle over TV riot footage

A CORONER in the North could face a legal battle over using TV footage of a riot in Derry where a Catholic man was crushed to death by a British army vehicle.

Nearly a decade after Dermot McShane was killed, new attempts are being made to begin the inquest into his death next February. David Hunter, deputy coroner for Derry district, urged lawyers representing the dead man’s family, the British ministry of defence and police to agree the scope of the hearing and questions are to be put to a jury.

Mr Hunter also revealed at a preliminary hearing in Derry courthouse yesterday he had written to TV companies who filmed the July 1996 disturbances in the city which led to Mr McShane’s death.

As well as receiving a tape from the BBC, he said: “I have received an offer from UTV to go and view whatever footage they have. They also apparently have some footage from RTÉ. I am told by UTV I can view that footage but if I wish to use it at inquest I will have to obtain a court order.”

Mr McShane was killed when a soldier drove at a hoarding behind which he was sheltering.

His American widow Treasa was awarded £8,000 (€11,776) damages in May 2002 after the European Court of Human Rights found the British authorities had violated her husband’s right to life.

A catalogue of defects in the subsequent inquiry into his death were also condemned.

Mr Hunter said the ministry of defence had told him that no board of inquiry was ever undertaken into the death.

After being told by lawyers for the security forces that they would need four months to arrange for witnesses to appear, he said: “It would seem to me then that certainly the latest I could start this inquest would be the beginning of February. I will send to the parties before the end of September my views on all of the correspondence, on the possible scope and on questions that should be put to a jury. I will ask parties to come back to me probably within two weeks of that to say if they are prepared to proceed on that basis or not. Then we could have the matter listed for February.”

One lawyer said an application may be made to screen military witnesses from public view.

But solicitor Paddy McDermott, acting for Mr McShane’s family, said: “The family would say it’s unnecessary in any event. There’s no threat to anyone and no reason for it.

“They would oppose it tooth and nail.”