A west Belfast man who spent 10 years in jail for offences he did not commit has called for other cases linked to the police officers involved in his conviction to be reviewed.
The Court of Appeal in Belfast yesterday ruled that Michael Devine's near 40-year-old conviction for a string of paramilitary offences was unsafe.
In 1981 Mr Devine was found guilty of 10 charges, which also included conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and wounding with intent.
Some of the alleged offences related to a gun attack on a policeman in Belfast in October 1978.
He was given a 20-year sentence, half of which he served in prison.
Another youth arrested later had his conviction overturned on appeal in 1981.
The conviction was referred back to court by the Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) in 2019 after fresh submissions were made by Mr Devine’s legal team.
His case partly hinged on claims that interview notes made by police were fabricated.
Both Mr Devine and the other youth had complained about the conduct of officers while they were in custody.
Both had claimed that things were being written down which had not been said.
Lord Justice McCloskey told the court the trial judge "failed to engage with evidence which clearly bore on his assessment of the veracity of the testament" of the officers and the evidence of Mr Devine.
Concern was also raised about the "the post-conviction evidence relating to the professional conduct" of one of the officers.
Lord Justice McCloskey told the court: "To summarise, there are four issues of substance which cumulatively generates irresistible unease about the safety of the appellant's convictions.
"Our clear conclusion is that the convictions of Mr Devine must be regarded as unsafe. It follows that the appeal is allowed."
Mr Devine last night welcomed the ruling and called on authorities to conduct a review into other criminal cases where the officers in his case played active roles.
"I have already served 10 years in prison," he said.
"I have always maintained my innocence and I am delighted that the court has now found that there was merit in the Criminal Case Review Commission's referral of my convictions to the appeal court and allowed my appeal."
Solicitor Joe Rice, of John J Rice and Company, said he was pleased his client's "good character has been restored".
"We will now been advising our client about his legal options, including applications for compensation for the 10 years he spent in prison," he said.
