A former senior officer at the Police Service of Northern Ireland is seeking legal advice following comments attributed to her during a hearing of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal.
Barbara Gray, former assistant chief constable at the PSNI, expressed deep anger and offense at comments attributed to her by a former detective who led a leak investigation in Northern Ireland.
The Investigatory Powers Tribunal is looking into allegations that the PSNI and other police forces unlawfully monitored journalists Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney after they produced a documentary uncovering police failures in investigating the murder of innocent Catholics by a paramilitary group.
In an email to officers at Durham Constabulary, former detective Darren Ellis claimed that Gray had advised him to be cautious when dealing with solicitors, barristers, and members of the judiciary due to their Catholic background, which she allegedly viewed as leading to biased decision-making in the legal system.
Gray responded to these allegations by stating that she would seek legal advice regarding Ellis’s comments and vehemently denied holding any biases in her career of 35 years. She emphasized her respect for the judiciary and commitment to equality, integrity, and impartiality.
Contrary to Ellis’s testimony at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, Gray asserted that she had challenged him directly on his critical remarks about Northern Ireland’s Lord Chief Justice, deeming them inappropriate and unacceptable.
In 2018, Ellis was brought in by the PSNI and Durham Police to investigate leaked documents referenced in a documentary by Birney and McCaffrey, which exposed police collusion with a paramilitary group in the Loughinisland murders of 1994.
The tribunal is examining allegations of unlawful surveillance of the journalists by the PSNI and other police forces as part of their investigation into the leaked documents.
