Latest news with #MarieAnderson
Irish Times
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman stepping aside temporarily due to commentary ‘detracting' from work
Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland Marie Anderson is to step aside temporarily because of 'current commentary', which she said was 'detracting' from the focus of her work. On Tuesday, Ms Anderson said she was taking a leave of absence with immediate effect. Authority will be delegated to the body's chief executive and senior staff in her absence 'to ensure the vital work of the office continues', she said. Unionist parties had called for Ms Anderson to temporarily stand down following an alleged incident at her home in Co Down in September 2023. A man was arrested and later issued with a police caution. READ MORE Earlier this month a file was sent to the North's Public Prosecution Service (PPS) following the conclusion of an investigation, which was carried out by West Midlands Police at the request of the Police Service of Northern Ireland. A spokeswoman for the PPS said one individual was reported for potential offences of perverting the course of justice and misconduct in public office. Ms Anderson is a solicitor and member of the Law Society of Northern Ireland. She was appointed Police Ombudsman in 2019 having been a former Public Services Ombudsman and deputy Police Ombudsman. As ombudsman, she is responsible for overseeing investigations into complaints about police conduct. She said that 'although I had decided to retire in December this year, which would have allowed me to fulfil my commitments to delivering the outcomes of investigations to a number of bereaved families, it has become increasingly clear that current commentary is detracting from the focus of that work. 'I am extremely grateful to those families who put their trust in me. And it is their interests which are at the heart of my decision to take a temporary leave of absence with immediate effect.' Ms Anderson said she had 'every confidence in all my staff and know they will work diligently' and she thanked them for their support in recent times. Trevor Clarke, a DUP MLA and member of the Policing Board scrutiny body, said Ms Anderson 'should have stepped aside at the time' but the statement 'appears to have only come following more significant public discussion on the news'. 'During that time there has been continued damage to public confidence in the Ombudsman's office,' he added.
The Independent
17-06-2025
- The Independent
Northern Ireland's Police Ombudsman takes temporary leave
Northern Ireland's Police Ombudsman has announced she is taking a temporary leave of absence. Marie Anderson said she has delegated authority in her office's chief executive and senior staff to ensure the work examining complaints around the conduct of police in the region can continue in her absence. It comes following the conclusion of an independent investigation into events relating to an incident at a property linked to Ms Anderson in Holywood, Co Down in 2023. Police Service of Northern Ireland officers went to the property at about 6.30pm on Saturday September 23 2023, after a report of a domestic incident. A man was arrested as part of the inquiry and later released pending a report to prosecutors. A file was subsequently sent to the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) and a caution issued to the man who had been arrested. West Midlands Police were then tasked with investigating further aspects of the incident. They concluded their investigation earlier this month, and a file of evidence was sent to the Public Prosecution Service (PPS). On Tuesday, Ms Anderson said she has taken the decision to take a leave of absence due to 'current commentary'. 'Although I had decided to retire in December this year, which would have allowed me to fulfil my commitments to delivering the outcomes of investigations to a number of bereaved families, it has become increasingly clear that current commentary is detracting from the focus of that work,' she said. 'I am extremely grateful to those families who put their trust in me, and it is their interests which are at the heart of my decision today to take a temporary leave of absence with immediate effect.' She went on: 'In my absence, I am delegating authority to my chief executive and senior staff as appropriate. 'This will ensure the vital work of the office continues, as there is no legal provision for the office to function without a Police Ombudsman. 'I have every confidence in all my staff and know they will work diligently and am grateful for their support in recent times.'
BBC News
17-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Police ombudsman Marie Anderson to stand aside
Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson has said she is taking leave of absence with immediate effect due to what she has called commentary "detracting" from her parties had called on her to step aside after a file was sent to the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) following an investigation into an alleged domestic incident at her Anderson said she had made her decision because it had become "increasingly clear that current commentary is detracting from the focus of that work".
The Independent
12-06-2025
- The Independent
1989 police probe into murder of John Devine ‘seriously defective'
The 1989 police investigation into the murder of John Devine was 'seriously defective', Northern Ireland's Police Ombudsman has found. The 37-year-old was murdered by loyalists on Fallswater Street in west Belfast on July 23 1989. The father-of-three died after armed men entered his home and shot him a number of times at close range. Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson has highlighted a 'series of failures' in the investigation. These include that a man prosecuted for Mr Devine's murder almost three decades later should have been arrested and interviewed as a suspect at the time. Mrs Anderson's report is also critical of the then police force, the RUC's wider suspect and arrest strategy, which she found resulted in police taking action against only two people on a list of 36 persons of interest, despite intelligence and other information which linked individuals to the murder. The report identifies that house-to-house and witness inquiries were not adequately pursued and led to missed opportunities to gather evidence which may have assisted police to identify suspects or open up lines of inquiry, and that all available forensic opportunities were not fully exploited. The investigation also found no evidence that the RUC alerted Mr Devine to the fact that his date of birth had been linked to the name John Devine, in a document found in two separate loyalist paramilitary intelligence caches. Although the document contained a different address and photo, the police did not consider the potential risk presented to Mr Devine, including whether a 'threat to life' warning was appropriate. 'Given the available evidence and other information gathered during my investigation, I consider the original RUC investigation to be seriously defective, and not capable of leading to the identification of those responsible,' she said. Ms Anderson acknowledged that the RUC investigation of the murder was conducted at a time when policing resources in Troubles-related incidents were stretched and under significant pressure in a year when 81 people died. She also found that there was no specific intelligence available to police that, if acted upon, could have prevented the murder of Mr Devine. The Ombudsman concluded that Mr Devine was the victim of a campaign of sectarian violence mounted against the nationalist community. 'Loyalist paramilitaries alone were responsible for his murder,' she said. 'Given the significant failings in the RUC investigation, I believe that Mr Devine's family were failed by police in their search for the truth regarding the perpetration of his murder.' Solicitor Padraig O Muirigh, who acts for Mr Devine's family, said they welcome the findings of the Ombudsmans' report. 'Mrs Anderson has concluded that the failings in the RUC investigation of Mr Devine's murder were so fundamental that the murder investigation was 'incapable of detecting potential offenders and supporting a prosecution',' he said. 'There were a litany of serious deficiencies identified in the Police Ombudsman investigation including a failure of RUC Special Branch to disseminate intelligence to the police investigation team, the failure to arrest and interview key suspects and multiple forensic shortcomings. 'These findings are a damning indictment of the RUC investigation into John Devine's murder. 'The breadth and nature of these failings cannot be explained by mere incompetence. 'The Devine family have a long-held view that those involved in the murder were protected from prosecution by the RUC and that the security forces colluded with loyalist paramilitaries. 'That view has been reinforced by these findings. The Devine family commend Mrs Anderson and her staff for the diligent investigation they have conducted.'
BBC News
10-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
PSNI complete investigation after alleged incident at Police Ombudsman's home
An investigation following an alleged domestic incident at the home of Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson has been completed, with a file of evidence sent to the Public Prosecution Service (PPS).The investigation was carried out by West Midlands Police at the request of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).It followed an alleged incident at Mrs Anderson's County Down home in September 2023. At the time, she faced calls from unionist parties to temporarily step aside, but she remained in post. A PPS spokeswoman said it had received an investigation file reporting one individual for potential offences of perverting the course of justice and misconduct in public office following the police investigation. "All the available evidence in the investigation file will be carefully considered by a senior public prosecutor and the test for prosecution applied," she added."A decision will issue in due course."All PPS decision-making is independent, impartial and in line with the code for prosecutors."As ombudsman, Mrs Anderson's office oversees investigations into police took up the position in 2019 and the fixed term of office is for seven years.
