Corey release blocked

THERE has been a dramatic twist in the Martin Corey case - with his release blocked by the Secretary of State Owen Paterson.
By The Newsroom
Published 10th Jul 2012, 17:17 BST

Corey was due to be released on Monday after he was granted unconditional bail.

The matter will now go before the Court of Appeal on Wednesday after a hearing today (Tuesday).

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Corey was convicted of murdering two policemen and sentenced to life in 1973. He was released on licence in 1992.

But his licence was revoked in 2010 over unspecified allegations he was involved with dissident republicans.

The former Northern Ireland Secretary Shaun Woodward ordered Corey’s recall on the basis of “closed material”.

Corey, 61, had challenged that move.

Earlier on Monday, a judge ruled that parole commissioners breached his human rights in refusing to release him.

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The case centred on the alleged secrecy surrounding the basis upon which Corey was sent back to jail. His lawyers argued that he was given insufficient understanding of the undisclosed reasons for the move.

On Monday, Mr Justice Treacy held there had been a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights which states that anyone deprived of their liberty can have the lawfulness of detention decided speedily by a court.

The judge found that the open evidence did not advance the Northern Ireland Secretary’s case against Corey, meaning that the decision was solely based on closed material.

Mr Justice Treacy also ruled that the Parole Commissioners misdirected themselves in law and failed to provide a sufficient safeguard against the lack of full disclosure.

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However, Corey’s release was put on hold because of the fresh challenge as lawyers for Secretary of State Owen Paterson returned to the High Court seeking a stay while an appeal is prepared.

Corey’s barrister opposed the request, arguing there was no jurisdiction to grant the application.

Karen Quinlivan QC also claimed it was inappropriate to put Corey’s release on hold following an initial hearing at which she was not present.

However, another judge, Mr Justice McCloskey, decided on Tuesday: “The stay which the court ordered provisionally yesterday will be extended until further order of the Court of Appeal.”

More on this story in the print edition of the Lurgan Mail this week.