Yet another brutal murder on our streets, a family devastated and the armed killers responsible for this terrible crime able to slip away .
This was the story of decades of conflict in our society - we do not want it to become the story of our hard-won peace.
Dan Murray was shot dead in a cold and cruel manner. This father, who was in his 50s, was delivering a food order to Lady Street near the Grosvenor Road in west Belfast when he was shot in his car on Monday night.
Mr Murray was known to the police and he had survived previous attempts on his life. In April last year he was shot in the face at point-blank range and needed emergency surgery to remove a bullet that travelled through his neck and chipped the top of his spinal cord.
He had also been shot several times in his car by the Continuity IRA and he claimed this was because the organisation was ``looking money''.
In an interview with this newspaper, Mr Murray firmly rejected claims he was involved in drug dealing and it is important to say that regardless of anything he may or may not have done, there can never be any possible justification for murder.
Despite the years of progress to establish peace and remove the gun from our society, there are paramilitary groups determined to exert control through threats, intimidation and murder.
Unfortunately, there are some people who continue to support these groups and their nefarious activities and are blind to the consequences of allowing thugs and gangsters to impose their malign form of justice.
In recent days we have seen further examples of this gun law with two separate shootings in the New Lodge area of the city.
These despicable crimes came only weeks after the shocking killing of father of four Michael McGibbon in Ardoyne, which sparked widespread revulsion.
People need to choose between the rule of law and the rule of the gun gangs who bring only misery and pain.
