Northern Ireland

Government to consider whether public inquiry is appropriate for Sean Brown case, court hears

Mr Brown was abducted and murdered by loyalists as he locked the gates of a GAA club in Bellaghy in 1997.

Bridie Brown, the widow of murdered GAA official Sean Brown
Bridie Brown, the widow of murdered GAA official Sean Brown (Liam McBurney/PA)
By David Young, PA

The Government will consider the appropriateness of holding a public inquiry into the murder of a GAA official during the Troubles, a court has heard.

Sean Brown, 61, was abducted and killed by loyalists as he locked the gates at Bellaghy Wolfe Tones Club in Co Derry in May 1997.

An inquest into his death opened in March and will resume next year.

Lawyers are involved in preparatory work, with particular focus on the process of reviewing sensitive evidence files and determining what aspects of them may be redacted from the hearing.

The widow of murdered GAA official Sean Brown, Bridie Brown (fourth from right) with family and friends and their lawyer outside court at a previous hearing
The widow of murdered GAA official Sean Brown, Bridie Brown (fourth from right) with family and friends and their lawyer outside court at a previous hearing (Liam McBurney/PA)

Coroner Mr Justice Kinney will hold specific hearings in January to consider applications from the police to withhold documents on the grounds of public interest immunity (PII).

At a previous review hearing, the PSNI raised concerns that an inquest was not the “appropriate vehicle” to air certain “intelligence” material related to the case, saying it should only be dealt with in closed court hearings.

PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said he would not dispute that a public inquiry would instead be an “appropriate method to continue the investigation into the death of Mr Brown”.

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At the latest review hearing in Belfast on Friday, a barrister for the Brown family asked for the Government to outline its position in respect of a public inquiry.

Des Fahy KC said: “The elephant in the room here is the stated view of the chief constable that these inquests may not be viable and that the chief constable would not stand in the way of a public inquiry should that be sought by the Brown family.”

Mark Robinson KC, representing the Northern Ireland Office, said he had sought instructions on the position of Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris.

He said the Government would consider whether a public inquiry was more appropriate once the coroner had completed the PII process and made a determination on the application to withhold evidence from the inquest.

“The position (of the secretary of state) is that the management of the inquest is a matter for the court and the position in relation to the public inquiry will be considered after the court issues its PII ruling,” he said.

Members of the Brown family were in court for Friday’s hearing.

The proceedings are taking place against the backdrop of the Government’s new Legacy Act, which says that any legacy inquests that have not reached the point of verdict by May 1, 2024 will be discontinued.