The Way the Legal Case of a Former Soldier Regarding Bloody Sunday Concluded in Not Guilty Verdict

Protesters in a tense situation with military personnel on Bloody Sunday
Protesters in a tense situation with military personnel on Bloody Sunday

January 30th, 1972 remains one of the deadliest – and significant – days during multiple decades of conflict in this area.

In the streets where it happened – the legacy of the tragic events are visible on the buildings and embedded in people's minds.

A civil rights march was held on a cold but bright period in the city.

The protest was challenging the policy of imprisonment without charges – detaining individuals without due process – which had been implemented in response to three years of violence.

Fr Edward Daly displayed a blood-stained handkerchief while attempting to protect a assembly transporting a young man, Jackie Duddy
Father Daly used a bloodied fabric as he tried to defend a assembly carrying a young man, the fatally wounded youth

Military personnel from the specialized division killed thirteen individuals in the district – which was, and continues to be, a predominantly republican area.

A specific visual became particularly iconic.

Photographs showed a clergyman, the priest, using a blood-stained cloth in his effort to protect a crowd moving a young man, Jackie Duddy, who had been fatally wounded.

News camera operators recorded considerable film on the day.

Documented accounts features the priest informing a journalist that troops "appeared to discharge weapons randomly" and he was "completely sure" that there was no provocation for the shooting.

Civilians in the Bogside area being marched towards detention by soldiers on Bloody Sunday
Protesters in the district being directed to arrest by British troops on Bloody Sunday

That version of the incident wasn't accepted by the original examination.

The initial inquiry determined the soldiers had been shot at first.

In the peace process, the administration commissioned a fresh examination, in response to advocacy by family members, who said the initial inquiry had been a whitewash.

In 2010, the report by Lord Saville said that generally, the soldiers had initiated shooting and that zero among the casualties had been armed.

The then Prime Minister, David Cameron, expressed regret in the House of Commons – stating fatalities were "improper and unjustifiable."

Families of the victims of the tragic event shootings march from the neighborhood of Londonderry to the Guildhall holding pictures of their relatives
Relatives of the casualties of the 1972 incident fatalities walk from the district of the city to the civic building holding photographs of their loved ones

Law enforcement started to look into the events.

An ex-soldier, known as Soldier F, was charged for homicide.

Indictments were filed regarding the deaths of one victim, in his twenties, and twenty-six-year-old another victim.

The accused was also accused of trying to kill several people, Joseph Friel, more people, an additional individual, and an unknown person.

Remains a court ruling protecting the defendant's privacy, which his attorneys have argued is essential because he is at threat.

He testified the Saville Inquiry that he had only fired at individuals who were carrying weapons.

That claim was rejected in the final report.

Evidence from the inquiry could not be used straightforwardly as testimony in the court case.

In the dock, the defendant was screened from view with a blue curtain.

He addressed the court for the initial occasion in court at a proceeding in late 2024, to respond "not responsible" when the accusations were presented.

Kin and supporters of those killed on the incident display a banner and photographs of the victims
Kin and supporters of those killed on Bloody Sunday hold a sign and photos of the victims

Kin of the deceased on Bloody Sunday journeyed from the city to the judicial building daily of the case.

A family member, whose brother Michael was killed, said they always knew that listening to the case would be painful.

"I can see everything in my mind's eye," John said, as we walked around the main locations discussed in the case – from Rossville Street, where Michael was killed, to the adjacent Glenfada Park, where one victim and the second person were killed.

"It even takes me back to my location that day.

"I participated in moving Michael and put him in the medical transport.

"I experienced again each detail during the testimony.

"Notwithstanding having to go through the process – it's still valuable for me."

James Wray (left) and William McKinney (right) were included who were died on Bloody Sunday
Peter Hernandez
Peter Hernandez

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