Campbell family entitled to the truth - Hussey

Ulster Unionist MLA Ross Hussey has said that the family of murdered RUC Sergeant Joe Campbell are entitled to know the full truth of this death.

Mr Hussey, who sits on the Policing Board, said;

“As a former member of the RUC Reserve I couldn’t agree more with the comments of the PSNI Acting Deputy Chief Constable Alistair Findlay that the report by the Police Ombudsman into the murder of Sergeant Joe Campbell made for “difficult reading.”

“We must try to look at these events in the context of the time. Sergeant Campbell was one of 14 RUC officers murdered in 1977 at time when the RUC strength was just over 5,200 officers who were hugely stretched in trying to prevent an all-out civil war.

“I have no doubt that mistakes were made by a force that found itself under-manned and resourced and faced with a murder–rate and level of criminality unparalleled in Western Europe. It is all too easy to judge and find fault from the comfort of the present day.  

"That said, the Police Ombudsman’s findings in the tragic of case of Sergeant Campbell are indeed very disturbing and the Campbell family are entitled to know the truth surrounding his murder.”

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