1981 John Proctor murder case based on cigarette DNA

[Jock2413]

DNA on a cigarette discarded at the scene of a policeman's death 29 years ago led to a man being charged with murder, a court has heard.

RUC reserve constable John Proctor, 25, was shot dead in Magherafelt in September 1981.

Seamus Martin Kearney, 54, of Gorteade Road, Swatragh, was arrested on Monday.

A policeman told the court his DNA sample matched one on the cigarette. Mr Kearney, who denies the charge, was granted bail.
Mr Proctor had just visited his wife and new son in the Mid-Ulster Hospital in Magherafelt, when he was shot dead in the car park.
Londonderry Magistrates Court heard tests were carried out on a cigarette butt found among 13 bullet shells at the scene of the murder in September 1981.
Mr Kearney also faces a charge of possession of a firearm, an Armalite AR 15, with intent to endanger life.

A defence lawyer argued the cigarette butt at the centre of the prosecution case was found two days after the murder in a heavily populated public area.
He also claimed there was no forensic tent erected at the scene.
He said the case against Mr Kearney was weak and there was no likelihood he would interfere with witnesses or fail to turn up for his trial.

The district judge described the murder as cruel and tragic and carried out in a heartless fashion.
He granted bail but he ordered the accused to report to police three times a week and surrender his passport.

Sounds like his Defence Attorney has a strong case against the DNA evidence. It is to be hoped that the Prosecution has more reliable stuff to see that he gets what he deserves

[Jock2413]

What does alarm me in cases like this is that the techniques used 30 years ago were acceptable in court. But with more modern techniques being used now, those older procedures will be put under the microscope by any half decent brief to create any measure of doubt and the courts will be bound by the guidelines of the 21st century and not what was acceptable then. It is quite probable that this ar*ehole is as guilty as sin, and it's quite feasable that he will get off on a technicality.
It would have been suicide for the police to have carried out the kind of forensic investigation that would be done in normal times. It would have taken a company of soldiers on rotation to protect them as well and that sort of manpower would not have been available. All that would have resulted would have been another attack on a static target. Unfortunately, the letter of the law makes no allowances for things like that.

[Filbert Fox]

Did you all notice he is also being charged with being in possession of a firearm namely a Armalite Ar15 with intent to endanger life ? Read between the lines and he is probably a present day Real IRA scumbag and has been caught in possession. So while he will undoubtedly get done for that the authorities want him away for a longer time than just possession hence the DNA swab taken and the link with this past murder.