The Donegal Pass area of Belfast was the scene of serious public disorder on two consecutive evenings in June 2002. Trouble flared shortly after 2am on 9 June when two males were assaulted at the interface between Donegall Pass, a largely Loyalist area, and the predominantly Nationalist Lower Ormeau Road. Males in Loyalist band uniforms were seen running towards Donegall Pass.
Police attending the scene reported coming under attack from a Loyalist crowd as the two injured males were treated by ambulance crews. Further police units were drafted into the area to prevent trouble escalating between the Loyalist crowd and a crowd of Nationalists which was gathering on the Lower Ormeau Road. A standoff ensued with police units continuing to come under attack from the Loyalist crowd, which had now concentrated outside a local public house.
At one point, police reported that a gunman appeared and fired two shots at officers.
Shortly before 2.40am police units moved on foot to break up a fight amongst the crowd outside the bar. Two males were arrested but the situation deteriorated after this intervention. Missiles, including petrol bombs, were thrown at police lines and at one point police reported that a gunman appeared and fired two shots at police.
At 4.50am, as the disorder continued, police authorised the deployment of baton rounds. Although no rounds were discharged and the disorder eventually subsided, follow-up searches by police recovered several crates of primed petrol bombs and a number of other offensive weapons.
At 9.25pm the following evening trouble flared again when a white van was abandoned and set alight close to the bar outside which trouble had flared the previous evening. Police units took up positions at either end of Donegall Pass to contain the subsequent disorder.
A male was seen handing out balaclavas and others were carrying fire axes and cudgels.
Masked males gathered at the bar and began to throw bottles and petrol bombs at police vehicles at the Ormeau Road end of Donegall Pass. A male was seen handing out balaclavas and others were carrying fire axes and cudgels.
A while later another vehicle was set alight close to the Water Margin Chinese Restaurant and police had to advance to allow the premises to be evacuated, while at the other end of Donegall Pass police units were attacked with petrol bombs.
Officers reported discharge of another five shots.
Police authorised the use of baton rounds at 9.58pm. The first round was discharged shortly after 10.20pm when shots were fired at police. Officers reported that a male, wearing a balaclava and carrying a handgun, emerged from Oak Street and fired one shot at a police Land Rover before retreating out of sight. A few seconds later the same gunman emerged again and fired a further four shots at the Land Rover.
An officer in a Land Rover responded by discharging a baton round through a porthole. The gunman was approximately 40 metres away at the time and the round fell short. The gunman then retreated into Oak Street and out of sight.
Meanwhile, police remained under attack at either end of Donegall Pass. A crowd of around 50 people, some armed with axes and cudgels, attacked police at the junction of Virginia Street and Donegall Pass, and a group of masked youths emerged from the grounds of the local Elim Pentecostal Church to throw a number of petrol bombs and other missiles at police Land Rovers.
At 11.09pm police reported seeing two males emerging from behind the church, both carrying petrol bombs. One threw his petrol bomb while the other knelt down to light his with a cigarette lighter. An officer in a Land Rover reported discharging a baton round at this male from a range of about 20 metres, striking him on the upper part of his left thigh and causing him to drop the petrol bomb before retreating behind the church.
An officer sustained serious burns to his face and hands after a petrol bomb was thrown through a porthole in a police Land Rover.
At 11.30pm a Land Rover was attacked with petrol bombs at Apsley Street, off Donegall Pass. One petrol bomb was thrown through the porthole of a Land Rover, resulting in a police officer suffering serious burns to his face and hands. Another officer suffered smoke inhalation but did not require hospital treatment.
Following this incident police held discussions with local community representatives, who assured them that order would be restored to the area. Following a lull in the disorder, authorisation for the use of baton guns was withdrawn at 12.22am.
Police units were withdrawn from Donegall Pass shortly afterwards and the area remained calm for the remainder of the night.
Three people were arrested during the disorder. None of the discharged baton rounds were retrieved, and despite a follow-up search no spent cartridges were recovered from the scene of the gun attack on police. Police also conducted three follow-up house searches in relation to the shooting, but no firearm was recovered.
No complaints were made to the Police Ombudsman's Office regarding the discharge of the baton rounds.
During their investigation into the circumstances surrounding the discharge of the baton rounds, Police Ombudsman investigators spoke to police officers on the night of the incident, reviewed police radio transmissions and video footage, and examined police officers' notes relating to the disorder. Attempts were also made to source civilian witnesses to the disorder, and via a community representative, to establish if local residents had taken video footage. No witnesses were identified and no civilian video recording appeared to have been taken.
Outcome of investigation:
The Police Ombudsman, Mrs Nuala O'Loan, concluded that police had been subjected to a premeditated, sustained and vicious attack by rioters who were intent on causing serious injury or killing police officers.
Given sinister nature of violence it can be argued that police were restrained in firing only two baton rounds.
"Given the sinister nature of the violence, it can be argued that police were restrained in only discharging two baton rounds during the incident," she said.
"There were numerous occasions when missiles were thrown at police lines following authorisation to use baton rounds yet police did not respond, despite circumstances existing in which the use of baton rounds would have been justified."
Mrs O'Loan noted, however, that public order warnings had not been made before the discharge of either baton round. While it would not have been practical to issue a warning before the first discharge, some 46 minutes elapsed before the second. She recommended that the officer involved should be reminded of the need for warnings even after an initial discharge.
The Police Ombudsman also commented upon the fact that the target of the second baton round had been crouching down when he was struck. "Consequently there may have been a greater risk of striking this male's upper body or head area."
However, she concluded that, given the seriousness of the disorder and the fact that the person was armed with a petrol bomb, the gunner's actions in firing at that point were necessary and proportionate given the threat.
In addition, Mrs O'Loan noted that the training records of the baton gunner had not been kept up-to-date, so that on initial inspection, it appeared he had not been authorised to use the baton gun. However, follow-up enquiries established he was in fact fully trained and authorised in the use of the weapon.
Recommendations for police as a result of the Police Ombudsman’s investigation
The Police Ombudsman made two recommendations as a result of the investigation:
- That the PSNI should conduct a review to address deficiencies in its training records system, to ensure that vital training courses are not omitted from officers' records.
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That police should accurately record the number of baton rounds issued to gunners. In this instance the allocation was noted as "one box" rather than the more precise "16 baton rounds" which would have allowed for an accurate calculation of the baton rounds discharged.