Three men accused of murdering Irish journalist Lyra McKee during riots in Londonderry in 2019 were acquitted on Friday after one of the longest non-jury trials in recent Northern Ireland history, leaving her family devastated.According to the BBC, the prosecution had alleged that Peter Cavanagh, 38, Jordan Gareth Devine, 25, and Paul McIntyre, 58, acted together with the gunman who fatally shot McKee, encouraging or assisting him, even though none of them was accused of firing the fatal shot.The defence argued that the prosecution’s case relied largely on speculation.McKee, 29, was struck by a bullet on April 18, 2019, while standing near police vehicles and observing clashes in the Creggan area of Londonderry.The dissident republican group New IRA later admitted responsibility for the killing, but the gunman has never been identified or brought to trial.The prosecution’s case drew on extensive video, mobile phone and forensic evidence, including footage filmed by an MTV documentary crew that had been recording in the area earlier that evening.Prosecutors argued the unrest had been deliberately orchestrated by dissident republicans to coincide with the crew’s presence, though the filming had ended before the shooting took place.Delivering the verdicts at Belfast Crown Court, Mrs Justice Smyth acknowledged that the outcome would bring “little, if any, comfort” to McKee’s family and described her killing as “an act of senseless violence”. She also noted that the person who fired the fatal shot had never faced justice.Outside court, McKee’s sister, Nichola Corner, said the verdict was “a complete and utter shock” and accused the justice system of failing both her family and Northern Ireland.“The system has completely failed Lyra, our family and Northern Ireland,” she said, adding that the family’s fight for justice was far from over. “We will leave no stone unturned. This is not over. Lyra said if you’re going to go down, go down fighting, and that’s exactly what we’ll do.”Corner also criticised what she described as a “culture of silence”, saying that despite more than 150 people witnessing the events that night, no one had come forward with crucial information.The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) defended its decision to bring the case, saying the legal threshold for prosecution had been met and that the trial had successfully overcome several legal challenges. It acknowledged, however, that the acquittals would be deeply disappointing for McKee’s loved ones.The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said it would consider the implications of the verdicts before deciding its next steps, while reiterating that its thoughts remained with McKee’s family and friends.The National Union of Journalists also expressed concern that no one has been held accountable for McKee’s killing. NUJ official Séamus Dooley said it remained “a matter of grave concern” that the person who pulled the trigger had “got off scot-free”, comparing the case to the unsolved murder of journalist Martin O’Hagan.The trial also involved six other defendants facing a total of 52 charges linked to the disorder. Kieran George McCool was convicted of common assault, while Christopher Joseph Gillen was found guilty of riot and possessing and throwing petrol bombs.Another defendant, William Patrick Elliott, died before the conclusion of the trial.
