The family of Lyra McKee have said “no stone will be left unturned” in their efforts to get justice, after three men were found not guilty of her murder.
Nichola Corner, the sister of journalist McKee, also called for an end to the “culture of silence” in Northern Ireland that meant that people did not come forward with information about the killing.
McKee, 29, died after being hit by a bullet as she stood close to police vehicles while observing disturbances in the Creggan area of Derry on 18 April 2019.
Paul McIntyre, 58, of Kells Walk in Derry, Peter Cavanagh, 38, of Mary Street, and Jordan Gareth Devine, 25, of Bishop Street, faced a joint enterprise murder charge.
Judge Mrs Justice Smyth found all three not guilty of murder in the long-running non-jury trial at Belfast Crown Court on Friday.
The judge is continuing to deliver her judgment relating to other charges.
In the public gallery, friends and relatives of the accused sat on one side, while friends and relatives of McKee sat on the other.
Members of McKee’s family left the court after the non-guilty verdicts on the three murder charges were delivered.
Speaking outside the court, Ms Corner said: “Today has come as a complete and utter shock to us as a family. The system has completely failed Lyra and has failed our family, and has failed Northern Ireland, to be perfectly honest.”
She added: “There is also a situation which is ongoing in our country, and has been for many years, in that people are afraid to speak out, they are afraid to tell the truth, they are afraid to share information that they have.
“Over 150 people witnessed this event on the 18th of April 2019. Not one of those 150 people came forward with evidence. That culture of silence needs to stop in Northern Ireland, it is unfair to victims.”
She said: “I’ll tell you what will not happen: … we will not go down with this. This is not over. Lyra said, ‘If you’re going to go down, go down fighting’, and I can tell you right now that every one of my family will, because we do this for Lyra. She deserves justice.”
Ms Corner added: “This started seven years, two months and two weeks ago, when people came out onto a street with a lethal weapon and fired at police, knowing that there were innocent people watching, knowing that there were innocent people outside homes, knowing that there were innocent people who could potentially be put into danger. That was when this began for us.
“We have been having to carry that strength for a very long time, and our strength comes from the strength of heart, which our mother had and shared with us all. That strength comes from our love for Lyra and our desire to ensure that she gets justice, and that no stone is left unturned to ensure that that happens, and I assure you that every stone will be checked.”
On the night McKee was killed, several petrol bombs had been directed at police and a car was set on fire during chaotic scenes that culminated in four shots being fired towards officers. One of those shots hit McKee.
The New IRA claimed responsibility for her death.
The prosecution’s case was that the three men had accompanied a lone gunman on the night McKee was killed, and encouraged or assisted him. But defence barristers criticised the standard of the evidence in the case, which was almost entirely circumstantial.
