JOURNALIST Chris Mullin, who exposed the Birmingham Six miscarriage of justice, has accused West Midlands Police of going "for the guy who blew the whistle" after they sought a court order requiring him to reveal his sources.
The former MP wrote Error of Judgement and made a series of documentaries which helped expose one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British legal history.
The Birmingham Six's convictions were quashed in 1991.
As part of its probe into the 1974 Birmingham pub bombings, West Midlands Police have applied for an order requiring Mr Mullin to disclose material relating to his investigation.
A hearing is to take place in London later this month.
Mr Mullin said that disclosing his material would be a breach of the principle that journalists are entitled to protect their sources.
“If West Midlands Police had carried out a proper investigation after the bombings, instead of framing the first half-dozen people unlucky enough to fall into their hands, they might have caught the real perpetrators in the first place," he said.
"It is beyond irony. They appear to have gone for the guy who blew the whistle."
The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is supporting Mr Mullin.
Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general secretary, said the West Midlands Police's case risks undermining press freedom.
"The principle of protecting your source and keeping your word when confidentiality is pledged is a vital one for all journalists and lies at the heart of the NUJ’s Code of Conduct," she said.
