Boston College legal battle could mean Gerry Adams goes to trial over IRA

Researchers now fear for peace process, own safety

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Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams

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Moloney and McIntyre claim they were appalled when Boston College complied with the judge's ruling.

'If they weren't prepared to fight to the bitter end like us, then why did Boston College get involved in this kind of project at all?' Moloney asked.

In response, Boston College spokesman Jack Dunn told the press that their response was hardly surprising, given that some of the tapes include confessions of involvement in crimes.

'We would never want anyone to think that Boston College was obstructing a murder investigation,' Dunn said.

Meanwhile, a Boston appeals court has blocked the handover of any IRA material to British authorities pending the resolution of two Moloney-McIntyre lawsuits.

Clarifying Boston College's position on the issue, Dunn told the press that ten years ago the researchers and key university staff naively presumed that the risk of any British legal action was low, given that the Good Friday agreement emphasized the need to draw a line under a conflict.

Boston College has already surrendered the tapes and transcripts of IRA member Brendan Hughes, a long-time Adams confidante who died in 2008.

Hughes told McIntyre that he had overseen McConville's arrest for allegedly being a British Army spy.  

'There was only one man who gave the order for that woman to be executed,' Hughes said. 'That man is now the head of Sinn Fein. I did not give the order to execute that woman. He did.'

Meanwhile, Adams' spokesman Richard McAuley told the press that Adams has nothing to hide.

'As to the specific allegations against Gerry, he's consistently denied them,' McAuley said. 'The truth is nobody knows what's on the tapes. We only know the innuendo and insinuation.'

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