This blog first appeared as a column in The Andersonstown News
The public interest in the case of 14-year-old Noah Donohoe is intense, certainly among nationalists and republicans. Last week I provided a platform on my blogsite for a guest blog by a young man called Donal Lavery. At the time of writing, his blog had been visited by more than 65,000 people.
There are a number of features to this sad case that may explain public attention.
One is Noah Donohoe’s youth. A sudden death at any age is painful for those mourning the deceased, but to be taken at fourteen years, poised on the brink of adulthood, is particularly sad. All the possibilities of that young life are suddenly ended and those who mourn him are left numb and stunned.
In Noah’s case, the general public joined in the search for him, with hundreds helping the police in their efforts to locate the boy. The bizarre stories around his cycling from one side of Belfast to the other, the reports of him appearing naked, of his laptop and phone and bike being located: there were almost too many jagged features of his disappearance that hurt the mind, just to hear of them.
And finally the discovery of his body in a drain, all hopes for his safety and his future now dashed, forever.
The PSNI reported that there were no signs of violence: this was at once relieving and added to the sense of confusion. Why did he cycle across Belfast? Why did he bring his laptop as well as his phone? Why was he without his clothes? How did he end up in the place he did?
There’s a danger, of course, that public concern can actually be public interest in the sensational. Talking to people I’ve got no sense of this, but it remains a grubby possibility for some.
But as my young guest-blogger pointed out, the police report on Noah’s case has provided more questions than answers. What was there about the boy’s body that the PSNI could be categorically sure so quickly that violence played no part in his death? Perhaps they have officers who are trained to establish such matters in quick time, but if there are, wouldn’t it help if the public were told the evidence for this firm no-violence conclusion?
And what do we know about CCTV footage of Noah in his final hours – have all cameras in the area been located by the police and what part have they played in the decision to declare the death of young Noah free from foul play?
The relations of the police with the general public are of great importance – particularly, given our history, with the nationalist/republican section of the public. There are few matters more important than the development of a solid bond of trust between the PSNI and those they serve.
Every sudden fatality deserves the full attention of the PSNI; the fact that the details of Noah’s death appear to have several bizarre features and that none of these have, to the best of our knowledge, been explained to the public: this cloud of unknowing is a breeding ground for all sorts of conspiracy theories.
At the heart of this is a grieving mother and family. They know that no matter what information about Noah’s death is unearthed, it will not repair the loss of a much-loved son and family member.
But until the details of what happened have been made verifiably clear, with every strand explored and connected, this heart-breaking loss will serve to deepen public disquiet and dry up the pools of confidence that need to be brimming if we are to have a police service which all sides of the community can trust.
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