No further soldiers to be charged over Bloody Sunday

No further former soldiers will be prosecuted over the killing of 13 civilians on Bloody Sunday, Northern Ireland’s Public Prosecution Service has announced.

Fifteen survivors were also wounded when members of the Army’s Parachute Regiment opened fire on civil rights protesters in the Bogside, a predominantly Catholic part of Derry, on 30 January 1972, one of the darkest days of the three-decade-long Troubles.

Families of the victims had waited 47 years to find out whether there would be prosecutions before one paratrooper, known as Soldier F, was charged in March 2019. But they have voiced disappointment by the decision not to prosecute 15 further veterans over the shootings.

In a statement, senior prosecutor Marianne O’Kane said there was insufficient evidence to prosecute other soldiers in connection with any specific involvement with the deaths or injuries.

“I know that today’s outcome will cause further upset to those who have pursued a long and determined journey for justice over almost five decades,” Ms O’Kane said on Tuesday.

“I can only offer reassurance to all of the families and victims of Bloody Sunday, and the wider community, that my decisions were conducted wholly independently and impartially, and in accordance with the Code for Prosecutors.”

The reviews process, led by officials who had not taken part in the initial cases, began in November 2019.  

“I have concluded that the available evidence is insufficient to provide a reasonable prospect of conviction of any of the 15 soldiers who were the subjects of the reviews. Accordingly, the decisions not to prosecute these 15 individuals all stand,” Ms O’Kane added.

The families of some of those killed on Bloody Sunday expressed “deep disappointment” at the decision and said they would request a judicial review.

Soldier F has been charged with the murder of James Wray and William McKinney and the attempted murders of five others. Ms O’Kane said there will be no change to those charges.