Peter McDonald

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Charge:	Terrorism
Sentence:
Years Imprisoned:
Year Crime:	1976
Year Convicted:	1977
Year Cleared:	2012
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	United Kingdom
County or Region of Crime:	Northern Ireland
City of Crime:	Derry
Result:	Judicially Exonerated
Summary of Case:	"Peter McDonald was 16 when arrested in December 1976 near an incident where shots were fired at an army Land Rover in Derry's Creggan estate, in Northern Ireland. McDonald was interrogated at length without a lawyer or an independent adult present and he falsely confessed to membership in the IRA's youth wing, Fianna Na h'Eireann, and to trying to lure a military patrol into the area. McDonald filed an appeal and on May 23, 2012 the Northern Ireland Court of Appeals quashed his conviction, ruling that no trap was planned so his admission was invented and that they were left with a sense of unease about the reliability of Mr McDonald's statements: "We conclude that these convictions were not safe and that this appeal should be allowed.""
Conviction Caused By:	False confession obtained during intense investigation without a lawyer or independent adult present.
Innocence Proved By:	"On May 23, 2012 the Northern Ireland Court of Appeals quashed his conviction based on the unreliability of McDonald's statements: "We conclude that these convictions were not safe and that this appeal should be allowed.""
Defendant Aided By:	"Solicitor, Paddy MacDermott"
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:
Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"Belfast court quashes terror convictions of two men jailed as teenagers, By Owen Bowcott (legal affairs correspondent), May 23, 2012"
Information Location 1:	http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/may/23/belfast-terror-convictions-quashed-jailed-teenagers
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Peter McDonald

Charge:

Terrorism

Sentence:

Years Imprisoned:

Year Crime:

1976

Year Convicted:

1977

Year Cleared:

2012

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

United Kingdom

County or Region of Crime:

Northern Ireland

City of Crime:

Derry

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

False confession obtained during intense investigation without a lawyer or independent adult present.

Innocence Proved By:

"On May 23, 2012 the Northern Ireland Court of Appeals quashed his conviction based on the unreliability of McDonald's statements: "We conclude that these convictions were not safe and that this appeal should be allowed.""

Defendant Aided By:

"Solicitor, Paddy MacDermott"

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Belfast court quashes terror convictions of two men jailed as teenagers, By Owen Bowcott (legal affairs correspondent), May 23, 2012"

Information Location 1:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/may/23/belfast-terror-convictions-quashed-jailed-teenagers

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Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

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