Family of Kathleen Thompson
The Coroner who investigated the circumstances on 6 November 1971 of the death of Kathleen Thompson, who was shot dead by a member of the Royal Green Jacket Regiment, presently identified only as Soldier D, has today confirmed that she has formally referred her inquest findings to the Public Prosecution Service.
On 29 June 2022 the Coroner, Her Honour Judge Sandra Crawford found that the shooting of Kathleen Thompson was not justified and that the soldier’s evidence that he felt that he was under fire when he opened fire was “contrived and self serving”.
Today, the Coroner confirmed that in exercise of her powers under s.35(3) of the Justice (NI) Act 2002 which states:
“Where the circumstances of any death that has been, or is being, investigated by a coroner appear to the coroner to disclose that an offence may have been committed against the law of Northern Ireland or the law of any other country or territory, the coroner must as soon as practicable send to the Director a written report of the circumstances.”
Kathleen Thompson’s daughter Minty today said:
“We welcome this development. Soldier D gave evidence of shooting our mother over the course of 4 days in court. He demonstrated a very selective memory when doing so.
“We now expect to see Soldier D face the consequences of his actions and for the Director to prosecute him accordingly.”
Fearghal Shiels of Madden & Finucane said:
“We hope that the Coroner will provide all necessary documents, including statements and transcripts of Soldier D’s evidence to the DPP to enable him to reach a fully informed decision, and not merely the Coroner’s findings.
“We are still engaging with the Coroner in respect of Soldier D’s anonymity, which we contend must now be reviewed in light of the content of her findings.”
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