Sir John Patrick Basil Higgins, known as Sir Eoin Higgins (14 June 1927 – 2 September 1993), was a judge of the

High Court of Northern Ireland The courts of Northern Ireland are the civil and criminal courts responsible for the administration of justice in Northern Ireland: they are constituted and governed by the law of Northern Ireland. Prior to the partition of Ireland, Northern I ...

. He was knighted in 1988. Born at Town Parks,

Magherafelt Magherafelt ( ; , ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 9,071 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. It is the biggest town in the south of the county an ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

and described as a "devout Roman Catholic", he studied at

St Columb's College St Columb's College is a Roman Catholic boys' grammar school in Derry, Northern Ireland. Since 2008, it has been a specialist school in mathematics. It is named after Saint Columba, the missionary monk from County Donegal who founded a monast ...

and at

Queen's University Belfast The Queen's University of Belfast, commonly known as Queen's University Belfast (; abbreviated Queen's or QUB), is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The university received its charter in 1845 as part of ...

. In 1948 he was called to the Bar and in 1967 became

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

, having served in the county courts of Armagh, Fermanagh and Antrim. He was first named to a judgeship in 1971. In 1982 he became

Recorder of Belfast The Recorder of Belfast is one of the two senior County Court judges of Northern Ireland known as Recorders, the other being the Recorder of Derry. The County Court judges in Northern Ireland are senior judicial officers, hearing civil actions, ...

. He became a judge of the High Court of Northern Ireland in 1984 and was in charge of the Family Division. He was a frequent target of assassination attempts by the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...

ever since his first judgeship in 1971 on a lower court. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'' reported that "he was on almost every hit list they compiled, despite (or because of) his Irish nationalism." Higgins "wanted Ireland and Northern Ireland to become united, but only through peaceful methods." In 1989, he tried loyalist paramilitary Michael Stone, who had killed three Catholics, including one Provisional I.R.A. member, Kevin Brady, attending an outdoor funeral service for three Provisional I.R.A. members. He sentenced Stone to life imprisonment with a recommendation that Stone serve at least thirty years, calling him a "dangerous and ruthless criminal."Michael Stone sentencing
''The Lewiston Daily Sun'', 4 March 1989.

Death

Sir Eoin Higgins died on 2 September 1993, aged 66, of an

aneurysm An aneurysm is an outward :wikt:bulge, bulging, likened to a bubble or balloon, caused by a localized, abnormal, weak spot on a blood vessel wall. Aneurysms may be a result of a hereditary condition or an acquired disease. Aneurysms can also b ...

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

, where he resided.Obituary
''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', 13 September 1993. He had been due to be sworn in as a Lord Justice of Appeal of Northern Ireland the following day.

References

1927 births 1993 deaths Alumni of Queen's University Belfast Deaths from aneurysm Knights Bachelor People from Magherafelt High Court judges of Northern Ireland Recorders of Belfast Lawyers from County Londonderry {{NI-bio-stub