Courts / Armagh / Report

Daughter of hooded man takes legal challenge against State

Date
2018-06-11

Stage
Hearing Or Decision

Primary locality
NEWRY

County
Armagh

Summary

Mary McKenna, daughter of the late Sean McKenna, one of the "hooded men" detained by the British Army in the early 1970s, has filed a High Court challenge demanding the Irish Government urgently inform her whether it intends to appeal the European Court of Human Rights' 1978 ruling that the men's treatment was not torture. Ms McKenna argues that her father's death in 1975 was directly caused by the interrogation and sensory deprivation he endured while interned. She cites medical evidence and new information released in 2014 showing the UK knew of the long‑term effects of the techniques used. The Irish Government's 2014 request for a revision of the 1978 decision was denied by the ECHR in March. At the High Court, counsel for Ms McKenna, Leanora Frawley Bl, noted the government has until 20 June to decide whether to appeal to the Grand Chamber, a deadline she says is too short.