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Christy Walsh ✍ Did Gerry A dodge a bullet because of courtroom technicalities on costs? Does the legacy of an IRA icon pick up his £400K legal bills?

Background of the Case

Whenever Gerry Adams steps into a courtroom, the air thickens with a peculiar brand of legal gymnastics.

The case was brought by John Clark, a victim of the 1973 Old Bailey bombing in London; Jonathan Ganesh, a 1996 London Docklands bombing victim; and Barry Laycock, a victim of the 1996 Arndale shopping centre bombing in Manchester. On the surface, it was a quest for truth.

£1 for the Open Secret

The claimants played a clever hand, or so they thought. By asking for a mere £1 in ‘vindicatory’ damages, they attempted to strip the case of monetary motive and dress it in the robes of a ‘Truth Commission’. They weren't looking for a payout; they were looking for a judicial stamp on the open secret of Adams' IRA leadership.

But in the English High Court, 'truth' is an expensive commodity, and the gatekeepers are the statutes of limitation. Adams' defence was predictable: the clock had run out. Why sue in 2022 for the sins of 1973? The claimants argued that Adams' own ‘fraudulent concealment’ of his IRA membership made earlier litigation impossible. It was a bold move - asking a judge to ignore the calendar because the defendant is a world-class escape artist.

The Costs Trap: Justice by Intimidation

The narrative collapse didn't happen because the evidence was found wanting; it happened because of something called Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting (QOCS). Under normal circumstances, QOCS are a shield that makes justice accessible for those who cannot afford high legal costs.

Adams' lawyers argued to breach the claimants' QOCS protection by alleging 'abuse of process' - and Justice Swift hinted they might succeed. If the judge formally ruled it an ‘abuse’, the cost-protection would vanish instantly. The victims weren't just looking at losing a pound; they were looking at a £400,000 bill from Adams' top-tier London legal team (see Joshua Rozenberg's analysis[1]).

Faced with the prospect of losing their homes to pay for the defence of the man they were accusing, the claimants did what any rational person would do: they folded.

The ‘No Order’ Paradox

The case ended on a "no order as to costs" basis. Adams spins this as a vindication. It is anything but. It was a tactical retreat. Adams got to walk away without the ‘IRA Leader’ tag being legally glued to his lapel, and the victims walked away without a debt that would haunt their grandchildren.

But Adams' lawyers didn't work for free. Adams' defence was elite, expensive, and extensive. If he cannot recover those costs from the men who sued him, who is footing the bill?

The Shadow of the Trust

This brings us back to a perennial Pensive Quill question: The Bobby Sands Trust (BST). Adams remains a permanent trustee of the BST, an entity that continues to guard the copyrights of a hunger striker with the tenacity of a corporate conglomerate. As documented here since 2016, the Trust operates in a financial vacuum - no published accounts, no transparency, and a ‘half-secret’ status that would make a Cayman Islands banker blush.

Is it a leap too far to wonder if the royalties from One Day in My Life - written by a man who died for the IRA - are being used to pay the legal fees of a man who swears he was never in the IRA? If the BST is acting as Adams' financial bodyguard, then Bobby Sands's legacy has been effectively weaponized to protect a man who denies any role in the IRA and the history of the struggle.

Neither side left with what they wanted. Intimidating financial costs keeps secrets classified and money hidden. The only thing 'firmly under wraps' is the truth: "Was Gerry A in the Ra?"

*For background on the Bobby Sands Trust see earlier coverage here: 


References


⏩ Christy Walsh was stitched up by the British Ministry of Defence in a no jury trial and spent many years in prison as a result.

Classified 🪶"Was Gerry A In The Ra?" 🪶 Alleged IRA Ties Remain Firmly Under Wraps

Gaels Against Genocide     with a statement regarding the instruction of the GAA Executive to have Palestinian flags confiscated at Croke Park yesterday.


Confiscation Of Palestinian Flags

Dr John Coulter ✍ Did you hear the one about the sex therapist, the Catholic priest and the GB News political commentator?

Now that opening sentence sounds like a joke, but it really did happen during the hilarious hit show by top Irish stand-up comedian Neil Delamere, perhaps best known for his TV appearances on the popular BBC comedy show, The Blame Game.

I know this to be true because I was that GB News political commentator who got roasted in front of 800 audience members at the glorious setting of the Diamond in the Ulster University’s Coleraine campus.

As part of our 37th wedding anniversary celebrations, my wife and I decided to go and see Neil as he’s one of our favourite characters on The Blame Game. We got front row seats … what could possibly go wrong?

I should have guessed from Neil’s sterling performances on The Blame Game that he loves to interact with his audiences, and especially those sitting in the front rows.

One thing is for sure, Neil will remember his night in Coleraine in March 2026 because his front row that evening really did contain a sex therapist, a Catholic priest … and me!

However, it is testament to Neil’s fast-thinking wit that he was able to turn his guests that evening into one of the funniest routines of any Irish comedian I have witnessed.

And it was all based on two simple questions - what’s your name, and what do you do?

There’s an old saying; forewarned is forearmed. So when chatting beforehand to some of my fellow audience members on the front row who had been at previous gigs, they told of how Neil likes to chat to front row members.

Now I’ve also been to a Jimmy Carr gig in England and beforehand I was telling a relative that when Carr said he was going to have a heckle amnesty, I would yell ‘heretic’ at him because of his jokes on Christianity.

In reality, I sat as quiet as a church mouse during the Carr gig. So as Neil made his way along the row in Coleraine, my brain was in hyper drive as to what I would tell him my occupation.

I didn’t want to say accredited preacher in the mainstream Presbyterian Church in Ireland given the safeguarding crisis in PCI; should I admit I was a pensioner? Should I tell him I was a retired lecturer in journalism? Or should I just come clean and admit I was a reporter? I opted for the latter.

Now I’ve had roastings in the past during my career in journalism. A former Taoiseach, the late Albert Reynolds, once took me apart during a live TV debate on TV3’s Sunday Agenda programme at the turn of the new millennium.

When I was a staff reporter with the Belfast News Letter in the Eighties, I once tried to go head to head in an interview with the then South Down UUP MP Enoch Powell. He took me apart in minutes by interviewing me on the choice of words for my questions!

And so Neil got to me. The look of joy on his face when I said ‘reporter’. I knew I was in for it! Then the killer question - who do you work for? My brain was saying ‘think, Coulter, think! Just say freelance!’

In seconds, I went over my options. Do I tell Neil about the Monday column on The Pensive Quill? Do I tell him about the online columns on the Belfast News Letter? Do I simply say I was the former Northern Political Correspondent of the Irish Daily Star?

So I just came clean and said ‘GB News’. He looked at me as if I had made his evening! ‘And what do you do at GB News?’ Was the retort? Before I knew it, I’d been sucked in by his professionalism - ‘political commentator’ I said.

Then the verbal demolition began. He had the audience - and even me - roaring with laughter at my expense. The one-liners were punchy, fast and hard-hitting; I had no come-back! I always believed Jimmy Carr could ‘box clever’ and think on his feet when it came to roasting members of the audience.

But Neil was outstanding in the way he could deliver his retorts, cleverly showing why he is one of the best comedians on the geographical island of Ireland. If ever someone writes a history of stand-up comedy in Ireland, north and south, Neil will certainly have a chapter all to himself.

Worse was to follow in Coleraine. For some of us in the front row, Neil wanted us to do our impression of an AK47 assault rifle firing without the silencer! As with all his gags, this had the audience constantly laughing.

Neil could turn any sound we made into a joke. I did my best to copy my primary school days when we would play cops and robbers in the playground. It didn’t work. At age 66, my AK47 impression certainly did not sound like my time at Clough Primary School in the north Antrim hills. It sounded more like a ewe in lambing season!

It has often been said that laughter is a great medicine. And if ever there was a top consultant in this field, it is Neil Delamere. No matter what trials or challenges you are facing in life, a Neil Delamere gig is just the tonic and great therapy.

In terms of entertainment value for money, Neil’s gig was tremendous - and I’m saying that as a Ballymena man! After Neil’s roasting of me, I’m now ready for any showdown with Jimmy Carr! As I said to my wife and friends before Neil’s Coleraine gig kicked off - what can possibly go wrong now?
 
Follow Dr John Coulter on Twitter @JohnAHCoulter
John is a Director for Belfast’s Christian radio station, Sunshine 1049 FM. 

The Sex Therapist, The Catholic Priest And The GB News Political Commentator!

Lynx By Ten To The Power Of One Thousand Nine Hundred And Twenty Six

 

A Morning Thought @ 3101

Anthony McIntyre ☠ Chilly as it is this Saturday morning even nippier is the thought that the Trivela Group who owns Drogheda United FC is trying to create a chill effect around freedom of opinion.

The decision by this band of profiteers to fire Joanna Byrne TD as joint chairperson of the club is odious. She was a Drog long before Trivela showed any interest. She will be a Drog long after Trivela have departed for more profitable climes. Passion keeps her with the club, profit keeps Trivela. 

For those who wish to swallow the politics of illusion that Trivela rather than Joanna Byrne has the best interests of the club and community at heart, the acerbic observation by John Maynard Keynes might serve as a wake-up call: Capitalism is the extraordinary belief that the nastiest of men, for the nastiest of reasons, will somehow work for the benefit of us all.

Joanna Byrne is an elected Sinn Fein TD. She is also her party's spokesperson on sports. The public who elect her fully expect her to speak on the crucial issues of our time, one of which is the genocide in Gaza which matters greatly to the Irish public. So much in fact that we have Israeli ministers telling the people they torment in Gaza that they can always move to Ireland. The public might not all, or always, agree with Joanna Byrne but would have every reason to feel shortchanged if she failed to use her voice for the purpose of enhancing public understanding.

Some Drogheda United fans have taken the view that a line should be drawn under the matter and that it is time to move on for the good of the club. I don't share that sentiment anymore than I share a similar sentiment that GAA fans should just move on for the good of the Association, quietly acquiescent in the GAA leadership's partnership with Allianz despite the latter's sordid financial association with the genocidal regime in Israel. I would prefer to see a campaign initiated which, if successful, would lead to the reinstatement of Joanna Byrne as joint chairperson. At the very least it would give voice to a sentiment that publicly disapproves of what Trivela has done, a simple reassertion of the principle Not In Our Name. Despite wishing the club well, being a season ticket holder, I certainly do not want to be on the same side as Trivela. Investment is important for the club's future but like the boycott of Israeli goods, there is the option of shopping around.

The tepid contention that sport and politics don't mix and should be kept separate has raised its head in some quarters; that politics should be left at the turnstile of Sullivan and Lambe Park. How hollow is that? Every home game we attend at Sullivan and Lambe we hear a political-cum-ideological statement issued. It informs spectators that discrimination and bigotry will not be tolerated and lists the type of bigotry that is banned from the stadium including targeting people on the grounds of their race, sex or religion. Moreover, there has been a considerable amount of political energy expended in lobbying Trivela to invest in the development of Drogheda United. So it is a myth that there are no politics in and around Drogheda United. Politics and sport might run on separate tracks but the history of both shows beyond doubt that they often merge. There is a term for it: Sports diplomacy. Think of the history of the Olympic Games. As a powerful cultural tool, sport is one of the ways in which cultural power is brought to bear on a range of issues, for good or bad.

If those who genuinely believe that sports and politics should at all times be separate, the very least they could do is pull Trivela up for bringing its sporting business into politics. Joanna Byrne was not wearing her Drogheda United chairperson hat when she called on the FAI to fulfil a humanitarian obligation. She was speaking in her capacity as an elected TD and party spokesperson on sport. She had a greater right to speak than Trivela had to muzzle her. Had Joanna Byrne made a statement calling for the upcoming match between Ireland and Israel to go ahead, she would never have been thrown under the bus by Trivela. She was not fired for speaking but for what she said.

It would be a sad day for Drogheda United fans if when faced with a choice between Joanna Byrne and Trivela, they shouted Give Us Barabbas

⏩Follow on Bluesky.

Choose Wisely

A Lawyer Writes ★ Written by Joshua Rozenberg. Recommended by Christy Walsh.

The home secretary has won an appeal against a ruling by a tribunal judge that an asylum seeker should be allowed to remain in the UK because he had murdered only one person.

The killer, a 54-year-old Turkish national identified only as KD, arrived on a lorry in 2001 and claimed asylum on the basis of his Kurdish ethnic origin and his Alevi Muslim faith, adding that he was a supporter of groups that are banned in Turkey and elsewhere.

He was refused asylum and in 2004 his appeal was dismissed on the ground that his claims were fraudulent. He and his wife remained in the UK unlawfully. In December 2005, he stabbed her multiple times in a fit of jealous rage. She was 23.

KD was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 12 years. He was released on licence in 2018 and served with a deportation order the following year. His appeal was heard in November 2022 by Judge C Scott, sitting in the First-tier Tribunal. The judge allowed KD’s appeal on asylum grounds.

Continue @ A Lawyer Writes.

One Murder Is Enough

Friendly Atheist ⛨ Attorney General Peter Neronha says missing records, rebuffed interviews, and destroyed files hide the true scale of abuse

After a nearly seven-year investigation, the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office has released a report detailing its findings of sexual abuse in the Catholic Diocese of Providence—in a state that boasts the highest proportion of Catholics anywhere in the country. Attorney General Peter Neronha said his office examined over “250,000 pages of documents held by the Diocese dating back to 1950.“

But even that won’t tell the whole story because the Catholic Church refused to help him any more than he was legally permitted to go.

According to the report, which can be read in full here, Rhode Island doesn’t have a law regarding a grand jury reporting statute. You may recall that this whole ball got rolling after a Pennsylvania grand jury report came out in 2018, but that’s because, in that state, the law allowed the state to force the Catholic Church to produce certain documents and testify about what had happened. In Rhode Island, however, there’s no such law, which meant Neronha could only work with the documents the Catholic diocese chose to give him. And that left huge gaps in their knowledge.

Continue @ Friendly Atheist.

Rhode Island Uncovers Decades Of Clergy Abuse 🪶 And A Church That Still Won’t Fully Cooperate

Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières 💣 Written by Bashir Abu-Manneh & Gilbert Achcar.

Why has the Middle East been so consistently wracked by war? In an interview with Jacobin contributing editor Bashir Abu-Manneh, political economist Gilbert Achcar argues that the answer lies above all in the region’s central place in the global oil economy and the strategies of great powers seeking to control it. Achcar discusses the logic of US intervention, the limits of the US-Israel alliance, Iran’s strategy in the current conflict, and the regional consequences of Washington’s evolving imperial doctrine.

Bashir Abu-Manneh - It is impossible to talk about the Middle East without talking about war. It’s probably the region most ruptured by war in the post-1945 era. In the last decade and a half alone, many Arab uprisings devolved into prolonged civil wars. Not to mention Israel’s forever war against the Palestinians. Why do you think war is so prevalent in the region?

Gilbert Achcar. There is no doubt that the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is, of all world regions, the one that has witnessed the highest number of armed conflicts since 1945 . . . 

Continue @ ESSF.

Middle East Wars Are Still About Oil And Empire

Right Wing Watch 👀 Written by Kyle Mantyla.


Last week, Christian nationalists Joshua Haymes and Brooks Potteiger urged their fellow right-wing Christians to pray "imprecatory psalms" against James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate from Texas.

Talarico is a Presbyterian seminarian who has openly cited his Christian faith in support of his progressive political positions, much to the outrage right-wing Christian nationalists.

Potteiger, who was the pastor at the church attended by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in Nashville, Tennessee, and will soon take over the Washington, DC church founded by Christian nationalist Doug Wilson, warned that Talarico is "a wolf" who is working to "distort what Christianity is in order to lead people away from Christ, toward the teaching of demons."

As such, Potteiger and Haymes encouraged the use of "imprecatory psalms" against Talarico, which are prayers asking God to pour out his destruction upon one's enemies.

"I pray that God kills him," Haymes declared. "Ultimately, that means killing his heart and raising him up to new life in Christ ... If it would not be within God's will to do so, stop him by any means necessary."

Shortly thereafter, Haymes, a far-right podcaster and commentator, returned to the subject of calling upon God to destroy one's enemies . . .

Continue @ RWW.

By Any Means Necessary 🪶 Christian Nationalists Call For The Destruction Of Their Political Enemies

Lynx By Ten To The Power Of One Thousand Nine Hundred And Twenty Five

 

Pastords @ 37

 

A Morning Thought @ 3100

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