A mother's fight for answers
Editorial Department • Published 15 Dec 2011 13:00
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No-one would wish to find themselves in the situation of loving mother Tracey McMulkin.
Her 16-year-old son was found dead a week after he went missing in April 2010. Daniel, who had learning difficulties and showed signs of autism, drowned in Lough Erne after going missing from his Enniskillen home. The pain of his disappearance and death is as raw for his family today as it was then.
His mother had misgivings about the police investigation into her son's disappearance, and with Daniel's father, vowed to find the truth and turned to the Police Ombudsman for answers.
The report recently written by the Police Ombudsman's office says that Enniskillen Police failed to treat the disappearance of this vulnerable teenager urgently and should have started the search for him more quickly.
It found that nine police officers, including Duty Inspectors and Sergeants "failed in their duty" to take adequate steps when investigating Daniel's disappearance.
All nine police officers, eight of supervisory rank, have been disciplined after they failed to correctly risk assess, record, enquire and review police actions in an effort to locate Daniel in an "expeditious and thorough manner".
In the report the Police Ombudsman's Office was also able to confirm that there are no police divers in Fermanagh as "an operational matter", after the family asked why police divers took so long to get involved in the search operation.
That the report into the police investigation took place is to be welcomed. It took the concerns of a family about police operations in relation to the search for their son and brother seriously. It investigated them over a period of time and action has been taken, where it was found to be appropriate.
It is right that the Ombudsman investigated this case and it is right that Mrs. McMulkin and Daniel's father Martin get answers to their questions.
Uncomfortable reading though some aspects of this report may be for senior police personnel in the county, the fact that cases like this are being investigated in a thorough manner must be welcomed by all who believe in the importance of openness and transparency in all aspects of public life.
And it is vitally important on a personal level for Tracey McMulkin, and Daniel's father Martin whose courage in asking painful questions at a most difficult time in their lives must be commended.
Their determination in the face of such adversity is admirable.
This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 15 Dec 11
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