Martin McBirney

Robert Martin McBirney QC (1922–16 September 1974), known as Martin McBirney, was a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

from

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

who was assassinated. McBirney studied law at

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

and became a barrister in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, before being called to the bar at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and W ...

. In his spare time, he became active in the

Northern Ireland Labour Party The Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) was a political party in Northern Ireland which operated from 1924 until 1987. Origins The roots of the NILP can be traced back to the formation of the Belfast Labour Party in 1892. William Walker stoo ...

(NILP), and served on its executive from 1964-67. In 1966-67, he was also party Chairman. He combined these roles as the first Chairman of the Northern Ireland

Society of Labour Lawyers A society is a Social group, group of individuals involved in persistent Social relation, social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same Politics, political authority an ...

.Aaron Edwards, ''A history of the Northern Ireland Labour Party'', p.157David McKittrick, ''Lost Lives'', pp.474-475 McBirney stood for the NILP in Belfast Willowfield at the

1965 Northern Ireland general election The 1965 Northern Ireland general election was held on 25 November 1965. Like all previous elections to the Parliament of Northern Ireland, it produced a large majority for the Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a u ...

, taking 35.1% of the vote.Northern Ireland Parliamentary Election Results: Boroughs - Belfast
, United Kingdom Election Results He was next a candidate in East Belfast at the 1966 general election, and took 45.3% of the vote in one of the party's best ever results, although he was not elected. His final contest was Belfast Pottinger at the

1969 Northern Ireland general election The 1969 Northern Ireland general election was held on Monday 24 February 1969. It was the last election to the Parliament of Northern Ireland before its abolition by the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973. Unlike previous elections that p ...

, where he took 48.6% of the vote and was fewer than two hundred votes short of being elected. In the 1970s, McBirney focused on his legal career. He was made a

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister o ...

, was appointed a resident magistrate, and served as Senior Crown Prosecutor for

. He worked as a lawyer for the defence on

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...

cases, including one involving the Derry Citizens' Action Committee, in which he defended, among others,

Eamonn McCann Eamonn McCann (born 10 March 1943) is an Irish politician, journalist, political activist, and former councillor from Derry, Northern Ireland. McCann was a People Before Profit (PBP) Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Foyle from 201 ...

. At approximately 8.20 am on 16 September 1974, Mr. McBirney was shot in his home at 172 Belmont Road, Belfast. A man was seen to get out of a car and walk to the rear of the McBirney home. The man was then observed leaving and getting back into the car which had two other occupants. The car was located some 500 yards from the scene of the murder. Its occupants were seen to drive off in another vehicle. The car used to convey the gunmen to and from the scene had been hijacked on the morning of the murder. It was attributed to the Irish Republican Army. Police investigations linked one person to the murder who was also identified as being the gunman. He was subsequently charged and convicted of murder and received a life sentence On the same day another judge, Rory Conaghan, was shot dead by the IRA outside his home at Beechlands off the

Malone Road The Malone Road () is a radial road in Belfast, Northern Ireland, leading from the university quarter southwards to the affluent suburbs of Malone and Upper Malone, each a separate electoral ward. The road runs parallel to the Lisburn Road and i ...

. Both murders have been attributed to the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief th ...

. On hearing of McBirney's death, his sister-in-law, Frances Cooke, suffered a fatal

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

. McBirney was a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

who had married a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

. The couple had one child. He was friendly with politician

Paddy Devlin Patrick Joseph "Paddy" Devlin (8 March 1925 – 15 August 1999) was an Irish socialist, labour and civil rights activist and writer. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), a former Stormont MP, and a member ...

, with playwright

Sam Thompson Samuel Luther "Big Sam" Thompson (March 5, 1860 – November 7, 1922) was an American professional baseball player from 1884 to 1898 and with a brief comeback in 1906. At , the Indiana native was one of the larger players of his day and was known ...

and poet Louis MacNeice. He personally wrote documentaries and plays for the ''

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

References