The convicted "loyalist" killer Michael Stone (photo) went on trial in Belfast yesterday, charged with attempting to murder Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams and the North's Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness.The former Ulster Defence Association (UDA) gunman faces a total of 14 charges at Belfast Crown Court, related to his violent storming into the Northern Ireland Assembly in November of 2006.
Stone has denied any intention to harm anyone at Stormont and described his attack as "performance art". If this line of defence would be accepted by the court, in principal any crime could be in future made legal by such a ridiculous excuse. However, there are actually experts in 'performance art' who have been called to give evidence in Stone's defence. (We should take notice of the names of those 'experts' and of what they say.)
In 1988 Michael Stone was convicted of killing three mourners who were attending a funeral of IRA members - shot dead in Gibraltar by British SAS soldiers - at Milltown Cemetery.
After serving years in prison he was released early under the reconciliation provisions of the Good Friday Agreement. But in contrast to most of the released prisoners, Stone seems to be still living in the olden days of senseless adversity and violence.
The Emerald Islander
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