IRA Terrorists Claim Damages

Four former prisoners, including convicted terrorists, are suing the government over injuries they say they suffered after a bungled jailbreak.

Six Republicans tried to shoot their way to freedom from the top-security Whitemoor jail in Cambridgeshire in 1994. One prison officer was shot and wounded in the escape.

One of the men, IRA terrorist, Liam McCotter is claiming compensation of £50,000, by alleging that prison officers beat him up after the attempted jailbreak

Mr McCotter, 36, says he was repeatedly kicked and punched by warders soon after he was captured, and again in a segregation cell.

A similar claim to Mr McCotter's has been lodged by Gilbert 'Danny' McNamee, 39, who also joined the breakout.

Both men lodged their claims with the High Court earlier this year, with a total of 27 prison officers being named in the legal action. The pair say they have been left with "reduced grip strength" in their hands while McNamee says he has since suffered from severe headaches.

It's An Outrage!!

Not only did an investigation by the police and Prison Service at the time rule that warders had not used undue force, but these men were convicted terrorists.

Mr McCotter had been serving 15 years for conspiracy to cause explosions in Manchester and London after a 200lb cache of Semtex was found in 1988.

Mr McNamee was serving a 25-year sentence for the Hyde Park bombing that killed four Guardsmen. (I feel it only right to mention that this conviction was later overturned and Mr McNamee was freed 18 months ago, after serving 11 years. However, he is reported to be in line for £100,000 compensation for his time in jail)

If the prison officers did beat them up, then I would say "obviously not enough", especially if a 'reduced grip strength' indicates some remaining functionality of the hand. I hope it was the one he used to pull triggers and press detonation buttons.

And severe headaches? Perhaps they are caused by guilt as opposed to an alleged barrage of hefty punches. Certainly I doubt that they are quite as severe as those of the many people who have lost friends and relatives to these terrorists, such as Colin Parry, whose 12-year-old son, Tim, was killed in the 1993 Warrington bombing. As the man himself said, "Many victims of IRA violence have received considerably less than the figure this man is seeking."

Perhaps we could award the IRA pair something similar to their victims, such as a pair of matching kneecappings, or a large packet of high explosive and nails?

By The Way - The night-time breakout from Whitemoor revealed astonishing lapses at what was supposed to be the country's most secure prison. Besides two smuggled guns, the escapees had an array of other equipment, including wire cutters and a 17ft rope ladder, which they had been able to make in the prison's workshops.

I'm not sure which is the bigger Outrage!!