The family of Ms Rosemary Nelson, Sinn Fein and the SDLP have deplored a decision by the Director of Public Prosecutions in the North not to take action against RUC officers who allegedly issued death threats against Ms Nelson.
The decision not to press charges against any RUC officers prompted renewed calls for an independent international inquiry into the circumstances behind her murder by loyalist paramilitaries in March.
She died in a car-bomb explosion outside her Lurgan, Co Armagh, home on March 15th. The murder led to allegations of security force collusion. Several human rights bodies, in calling for an inquiry, claimed there was evidence of police harassment of Ms Nelson.
Ms Nelson had complained that death threats against her were made to some of her clients while they were being questioned in RUC custody.
Sinn Fein said it was not surprised. The SDLP Minister of Agriculture, Ms Brid Rodgers, called for an independent inquiry and said the decision had devastated the Nelson family.
It was also reported yesterday that an RUC chief inspector who was initially charged with overseeing an RUC investigation into the death threat allegations may sue the Independent Commission for Police Complaints (ICPC).
Last March, in a hard-hitting report, the ICPC was severely critical of the RUC's handling of the investigation. The report detailed ill-disguised police hostility towards the solicitor. It spoke of an RUC mindset on the inquiry "bordering on the obstructive".
It also claimed that the chief inspector made "moral judgments on Ms Nelson" and others, and that he had difficulty co-operating productively with the investigation, which was overseen by an ICPC barrister.
The ICPC was so unhappy with the RUC's handling of the case that it complained to the RUC Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, who subsequently withdrew the investigation from the RUC and handed it over to Commander Neil Mulvihill, of the London Metropolitan Police.
The Sunday Times reported yesterday that the chief inspector who led the original RUC investigation is considering suing the ICPC for defamation. He was quoted as saying he was "completely vindicated" by the DPP's decision not to prosecute.
While no charges are to be made, it is still up to senior RUC officers to take internal disciplinary action against police officers who were investigated. No decision has been taken on this.
Mr Nelson called for an independent inquiry into the killing. "This decision by the DPP is another body blow for our family. Nearly 10 months after her death, there is no sign of any commitment to truth or justice for Rosemary.
"Tony Blair must recognise his responsibility in relation to truth and justice for Rosemary and establish an independent international judicial inquiry into all the circumstances surrounding her murder," he said in a statement.
Mr Colin Port, the Norfolk Deputy Chief Constable who is in charge of the investigation into Ms Nelson's murder, stressed that his inquiry was continuing and was far from complete. "The decision by the DPP will not affect the progress of the investigation into Rosemary's murder," he added.
However, calls continued for the case to be handed to an outside international inquiry team. Ms Rodgers said at the heart of the matter lay issues of justice, transparency and trust.
"All of the circumstances surrounding the death of Rosemary Nelson have left many unanswered questions. It now seems that the only way that the whole matter can be satisfactorily resolved is through an independent public inquiry," she said.
Mr Gerry Kelly, the Sinn Fein MLA for North Belfast, while condemning the decision, said he was not surprised by it. "No one can deny that members of the RUC threatened Rosemary Nelson's life," he said.
He claimed that in "each and every case" of RUC involvement in the deaths of nationalists, the DPP never brought prosecutions. "Once more this force is seen as being able to act with impunity when it comes to its treatment of nationalists."
Mr Norman Boyd MLA, of the Northern Ireland Unionist Party, said most of the people of Northern Ireland would agree with the DPP's decision. "This was nothing more than a failed attempt by republicans to try to discredit the Royal Ulster Constabulary for political purposes," he said.
