A former policeman convicted of murdering his wife and two children hopes the discovery of medical notes could clear his name, the High Court in Belfast heard yesterday. John Torney (43) a former RUC constable, is serving a 20-year minimum life sentence for the murder of his wife Linda, son John (13) and daughter Emma (11), who were found with gunshot wounds in the head in the family home in Cookstown, Co Tyrone, in September 1994.
At his trial Torney denied the killings and claimed that the son shot his mother and sister before killing himself with his father's police revolver.
Mr Justice Kerr said he was not persuaded that Torney had a right to production of the notes. But, rather than dismiss the application for leave to seek judicial review, he said he would adjourn it to enable lawyers to investigate the rights of the Criminal Cases Review Commission to require production.