Report is now out. "The state failed to protect high-profile solicitor Rosemary Nelson before her murder in Northern Ireland a major public inquiry has found.

The hard-hitting report found no firm evidence of a direct role in the car bomb attack 12 years ago, but it said it could not rule out the possibility of involvement by a rogue element of the security forces.

The inquiry, concluded that Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) officers publicly abused and assaulted the solicitor, and it believed police intelligence on the 40-year-old mother of three had leaked out.

Before her death on March 15 1999, the lawyer, who worked on a number of controversial cases including those of suspected republican terrorists, had alleged police intimidation.

Those claims gained international attention and the report found police had made "abusive and threatening remarks" about the solicitor.

The public inquiry found that the state "failed to take reasonable and proportionate steps to safeguard the life of Rosemary Nelson".


It is very hard to expect the people living in the North of Ireland to believe that a new loyalist group who had been making crude pipe bombs out of fireworks for three years suddenly develop the skill to produce a duel magnetic tilt device using C4 explosive.

Police officers turned up drunk at interviews regarding her murder, other refused to attend.

It was collusion, just as the British government colluded for 30 years with state agencies.

People here learn to expect little and accept less.