Gerry Adams has won his defamation case against the BBC, in which the former Sinn Féin leader said the British broadcaster had falsely claimed that he sanctioned the killing of his former colleague Denis Donaldson.
The jury of awarded €100,000 in damages to Mr Adams after seven hours of deliberations, after agreeing that the words used in the BBC programme had meant that the former Sinn Féin leader had sanctioned the murder of his former colleague. The BBC had argued that it was presented as an allegation.
The jury rejected the BBC’s defence that it was fair and reasonable to broadcast it in the public interest.
The claim was made in a 2016 Spotlight programme and a subsequent online article, which looked at the 2006 murder of Mr Donaldson – who had admitted being an informer for the police and MI5 .
Speaking outside court, Mr Adams said: “From my perspective, taking this case was about putting manners on the British Broadcasting Corporation”.
“I know many, many journalists. I like to think that I get on well with most of them. I get on well with the most of them and I wish you well…
“But the British Broadcasting Corporation upholds the ethos of the British state in Ireland and in my view, its out of sync in many, many fronts with the Good Friday Agreement,” Mr Adams said outside court.
“It hasn’t caught on to where we are on this island as part of the process, the continuing process, of building peace and justice and harmony and hopefully in the time ahead unity.”
Reporter for BBC Spotlight, Jennifer O’Leary, had told the court that the allegation made by a republican source was corroborated by at least five other sources, adding that she had taken the “utmost care” in making the programme.
Outside the court today, she said, “I said in the witness box, I had nothing to hide, only sources to protect and I want to thank them for trusting me.
BBC NI director Adam Smyth thanked Ms O’Leary and said that the broadcasting corporation would take some time to consider the implications of the ruling.