The Way this Trial of an Army Veteran Regarding Bloody Sunday Ended in Acquittal

January 30th, 1972 stands as one of the most fatal – and significant – dates in three decades of conflict in this area.

Throughout the area where it happened – the memories of Bloody Sunday are displayed on the walls and etched in people's minds.

A protest demonstration was organized on a chilly yet clear afternoon in the city.

The protest was a protest against the system of detention without trial – detaining individuals without legal proceedings – which had been established after multiple years of unrest.

Soldiers from the Parachute Regiment killed thirteen individuals in the neighborhood – which was, and continues to be, a overwhelmingly republican area.

One image became notably memorable.

Photographs showed a clergyman, the priest, displaying a bloodied cloth while attempting to shield a assembly transporting a youth, the injured teenager, who had been fatally wounded.

News camera operators recorded extensive video on the day.

The archive contains Fr Daly informing a reporter that military personnel "appeared to shoot indiscriminately" and he was "absolutely certain" that there was no reason for the shooting.

That version of the incident was rejected by the original examination.

The initial inquiry determined the Army had been shot at first.

During the resolution efforts, Tony Blair's government set up a new investigation, following pressure by bereaved relatives, who said the first investigation had been a whitewash.

During 2010, the conclusion by Lord Saville said that on balance, the soldiers had fired first and that none of the individuals had posed any threat.

The contemporary government leader, the leader, expressed regret in the Parliament – saying deaths were "unjustified and unacceptable."

The police started to examine the incident.

A military veteran, known as Soldier F, was charged for homicide.

Indictments were filed regarding the deaths of the first individual, in his twenties, and 26-year-old another victim.

Soldier F was also accused of attempting to murder Patrick O'Donnell, Joseph Friel, Joe Mahon, an additional individual, and an unnamed civilian.

Exists a court ruling preserving the veteran's privacy, which his attorneys have maintained is required because he is at threat.

He stated to the examination that he had only fired at individuals who were carrying weapons.

The statement was disputed in the official findings.

Material from the investigation was unable to be used straightforwardly as testimony in the court case.

In court, the veteran was shielded from sight using a protective barrier.

He spoke for the opening instance in the proceedings at a hearing in that month, to respond "not guilty" when the accusations were put to him.

Relatives of the victims on that day made the trip from Derry to the courthouse daily of the trial.

John Kelly, whose sibling was fatally wounded, said they always knew that listening to the proceedings would be difficult.

"I can see everything in my memory," he said, as we walked around the key areas referenced in the case – from the location, where the victim was fatally wounded, to the nearby Glenfada Park, where the individual and the second person were killed.

"It reminds me to my position that day.

"I assisted with my brother and lay him in the ambulance.

"I experienced again the entire event during the evidence.

"Notwithstanding having to go through the process – it's still worthwhile for me."