Pat Finucane
Court finds in favour of widow
The British government has been found guilty of a breach of human rights in the investigation into the 1989 murder of the Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane.
Mr Finucane's widow Geraldine took the case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
She was claiming that her human rights had been violated because there was no effective investigation by the RUC into the killing.
The Court ruled that there was no effective investigation into the allegations of collusion by security personnel.
The Court also found that Mrs Finucane's human rights had been violated because of a failure to comply with Article Two of the Convention, that everyone's right to life shall be protected by law.
She was awarded legal costs of €43,000 regarding the case.
Pat Finucane's son, Michael, has said it was easy to see why the British government did not want to investigate the murder; he said that they were the instigators and facilitators of it.
A trio of human rights bodies have welcomed the court's verdict.
Amnesty International, British Irish Rights Watch and the Committee on the Administration of Justice called on the British government to take immediate action in accordance with the ruling.
The Sinn Féin national chairman Mitchel McLaughlin said the verdict made the case for a full independent inquiry into Pat Finucane's murder even stronger.
