Senior British army officers who decided that two soldiers who murdered Belfast teenager Mr Peter McBride should be retained in the army were criticised in Belfast High Court yesterday.
"The generals decided that somehow this wasn't really murder if it was only in Northern Ireland," said Mr Michael Lavery QC. He is appearing for the dead boy's mother, Mrs Jean McBride.
Mr Lavery's remarks were made in closing submissions at an application for judicial review of the decision by the Ministry of Defence and the Army Board to retain Scots Guardsmen James Fisher and Mark Wright, who have served six years of a life sentence for murdering Mr McBride (19) near his home in the New Lodge area of Belfast in 1992. The case was brought by Mrs McBride.
Judgment was reserved by Mr Justice Kerr.