Flash: Springhill-Westrock Inquest vindicates families

Posted by Jim on May 1, 2026

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Flash: Springhill-Westrock Inquest vindicates families

A coroner has ruled that British soldiers did not use reasonable force in the 1972 Springhill and Westrock massacre in west Belfast, finding that five innocent civilians – including a priest, a father-of-six and three teenagers – were killed in aimed shots and posed no threat at the time.

The findings, delivered after a long-running inquest, brought some closure to 54 years of grief and campaigning against a hostile justice system. The victims were John Dougal, Patrick Butler, Father Noel Fitzpatrick, David McCafferty and Margaret Gargan. The original inquest in 1973 returned an open verdict.

The coroner found that all five of the deceased were shot by soldiers from the 1st Kings Regiment, firing from one location and in breach of the British Army’s own yellow card rules of engagement.

Justice Scoffield concluded that Father Noel Fitzpatrick, 42, Patrick Butler, 38, and David McCafferty, 14, were shot dead at Westrock Drive around 10pm on 9 July 1972, and that the force used was “not reasonable.” He said they were shot by one soldier firing from Corry’s timber yard.

He said Fr Fitzpatrick and Mr Butler were killed by the same bullet and that the soldier could not have believed any of them were armed. The coroner found that “no warning was shouted” and said the priest, who was “recognisable as a priest,” stepped out from cover unarmed before being shot.

The judge also concluded that David McCafferty “was not armed” and “posed no threat to anyone” when he was killed by the same soldier, adding that he had been assisting the other two after they were shot. Regarding that killing, he found that the soldier did not have an honest belief that he was under immediate danger or attack.

The court also heard that 16-year-old John Dougal was shot in the back while running away and trying to take cover, with the judge finding it was “more likely than not” that he had also been shot by the same soldier. He said there was “no evidence whatsoever that a warning was shouted” and ruled that the force used was not reasonable even if Dougal had been armed.

On Margaret Gargan, 13, the coroner concluded she was shot by a second soldier, also from Corry’s Yard, in an aimed shot and that she “posed no risk at all.” He said she was “talking to her friends in the street” and that no warning was given before the fatal shot was fired.

The inquest also found that soldiers “overreacted to perceived threats and ultimately lost control.” Justice Scoffield said some sporadic rounds had been fired earlier in the evening, but he rejected the civilian case that no round had been fired that day.

Families of the dead arrived at Belfast Coroner’s Court holding a banner reading “time for truth” and were met with applause. A number of political representatives and supporters were present, including Sinn Féin junior minister Aisling Reilly, Sinn Féin MP Paul Maskey and People Before Profit Assembly member Gerry Carroll.

In a joint statement, the families said they “stand together after almost 54 years of grief, loss, and unanswered questions.” They said: “For us, this is not history; it is something we have lived with every day.” They added: “We have consistently maintained that those who died were innocent civilians, and that the force used on that day was indiscriminate and unjustified.”

Relatives for Justice expressed solidarity, stating: “Our sincere thoughts and gratitude are with these extraordinary families this evening. They have borne unmerciful hardship and trauma. Their courage in the face of the British state’s impunity has been truly inspiring.”