Josie McCallion and Patricia O'Brien
Mairead McCallion
The sister of suspected murder victim Mairead McCallion has slammed the PPS for dropping charges against a man accused of killing her.
Patricia O’Brien said evidence against Noel Knox should have been put before a jury and she accused the Public Prosecution Service of “slapping them in the face”.
On Tuesday at Omagh Magistrates Court the Public Prosecution Service withdrew a murder charge against 50-year-old Knox.
He was due to stand trial for murdering his partner Mairéad in February this year.
Ms McCallion’s sister Patricia O’Brien said justice had not been done.
“We do not believe that the decision of the Public Prosecution Service was correct,” Ms O’Brien said.
“We believe the evidence should have been put to trial. Mairéad did not die of natural causes. She did not fall and bang her head. We’d have liked this to go to trial so the full circumstances and story could be established.
“As a family, we need to know how Mairéad met her death. There are still questions to be answered. We want to find out what happened. The full story and circumstances would have come out in a trial.”
Patricia is further distressed because she believes that some witnesses could have co-operated better with the investigation.
In court, the lawyer from the Public Prosecution Service said the charges were being dropped because of a report from a neuro-pathologist.
This queried the nature of the injuries. “We don’t know if we can overturn an expert pathology report,” Ms O’Brien said.
Ms O’Brien said she and the family feel very upset at a statement which Knox issued through his solicitor.
Knox said that the withdrawal of charges “totally exonerated” him.
She pointed out that the charges were withdrawn because the Public Prosecution Service did not believe, on the basis of the pathology report, that there was a realistic possibility of conviction if the case went to trial.
The family is seeking to meet with the Public Prosecution Service. “We don’t know if this will be sufficient,” Ms O’Brien said.
She believes there were earlier shortcomings by the Public Prosecution Service in respect of how it handled incidents in her sister’s life.
Had these been handled better, she believes her sister would not be dead. “More needs to be done to protect vul
nerable women like her,” she said.
The events in Tuesday’s court have left the family distraught.
“We hadn’t properly grieved for Mairéad because of this trial,” Ms O’Brien said.
“Families hold on and hold on until they get closure, they get justice. This was a slap in the face. We’re back to not sleeping. It’s having that effect on us. The frustration is eating us.
“It’s one thing losing a family member, but losing a family member in the circumstances we lost Mairéad, it’s just not right.
“The doctors said her injuries were catastrophic, devastating. In fact, one doctor told us it was the equivalent of being in a motorbike crash.”
She said it was particularly bad for her father. “He’s an older generation that believes justice would be done,” she said. “He can’t understand why. It doesn’t make sense. He’s struggling with that.”
In this black time, the McCallions are heartened by the support they have received from neighbours and from organisations.
The whole family were all very fond of Mairéad, left. She was the second-youngest of eight.
Ms O’Brien described her as “funny, witty, kind, caring, very, very intelligent.”
The family know also she was vulnerable. At school, she had been a straight A student.
Her favourite subjects were Mathematics and Applied Mathematics. She had attended Stirling University in Scotland, but left during her first year because she was homesick.
Back home, she qualified as an accounting technician. Unfortunately, she developed problems in her life and had not been able to work for some years.
“Mairéad’s story should have been heard,” Ms O’Brien said. “It would have been in the public interest.”
To that end, the family have already met several politicians. They are seeking a meeting with Justice Minister David Ford.
“There is something very wrong with the justice system when something like this happens,” Ms O’Brien said. “Our justice system sucks, and needs to change. No family should have to go through this.
“We will do whatever we have to do, we will go wherever we will have to go, we will make noises where noises have to be made.”
Fifty-year old Knox, of Knockshee Park, Omagh, left the court without speaking after the charges were dropped. He later issued a statement through his solicitor, Conor Sally.
He expressed “sincere condolences at the tragic death of Mairéad.” He also expressed “delight and relief” at the court’s decision.
Mr Sally said, “suspicion and innuendo has tarnished my client’s good name.” Knox “co-operated completely with every aspect of the police investigation surrounding Mairéad’s death.”
“The accumulation of this process has been the complete exoneration of my client [Knox], consistent with the position my client has asserted from the outset of this matter,” the statement said.