Solway judge outlines his reasons

Richard Gidney had denied the charges against him

The judge who called a halt to the Solway Harvester manslaughter trial has been outlining the reasons for his decision.

Acting Deemster Andrew Moran QC directed a jury at the High Court in Douglas, Isle of Man, to find trawler owner Richard Gidney not guilty.

The 41-year-old had denied killing the seven crew members on board the trawler, which sank in January 2000, by breaching his duty of care.

Earlier this week, at the end of the prosecution case, his lawyers lodged a motion that there was no case to answer.

The history of the Solway Harvester tragedy

On Wednesday, Acting Deemster Moran said that he agreed - and spent an hour-and-a-half explaining why.

"I have decided as a matter of law I have a duty to stop this case from proceeding any further and I must direct the jury to return verdicts of not guilty," he told the court.

In previous cases where defendants had been convicted their breaches of care had been described as "abysmal" or "a gross dereliction of care".

As a matter of law there is no evidence by reference a jury could conclude that the defendant's conduct departed in any way from what was to be expected and certainly it could not be determined as criminal Acting Deemster Andrew Moran

He said: "There is nothing anywhere in the evidence in this case which identifies Mr Gidney's conduct in such deprecatory terms."

Acting Deemster Moran said the boat's owner had put his trust in skipper Craig Mills to ensure the maintenance and seaworthy condition of the vessel.

"The owner relied on a competent man with the required qualifications to ensure the maintenance of the boat," he said.

"As a matter of law there is no evidence by reference a jury could conclude that the defendant's conduct departed in any way from what was to be expected and certainly it could not be determined as criminal."

The judge also recalled how Mr Mills was regarded as a "good" and "safety conscious" skipper by his crew.

SOLWAY HARVESTER CREW Skipper Andrew Mills, 29, known as Craig Robin Mills, 33, Craig's brother David Mills, 17, Craig's cousin Martin Milligan, 26 John Murphy, 22 David Lyons, 18 Wesley Jolly, 17

On Boxing Day 1999 he had sacrificed a day off in a bid to fix a blockage on the 21-metre trawler.

However, he said Mr Mills had failed to replace a crucial ice scuttle lid which had been identified as a contributory cause of the sinking.

Acting Deemster Moran said evidence from marine experts had been "crippling" to the prosecution case.

He also rejected prosecution assertions that Mr Gidney had been "wilfully blind" to the missing scuttle lid.

"There's no direct evidence whatsoever from any witness that Mr Gidney acquired such knowledge," he said.

He also said that the owner had demonstrated "proactive and safety conscious conduct" following a flood on board the Solway Harvester's sister ship.

0130 GMT, 10 Jan 2000: The Solway Harvester sails from Kirkcudbright into the Irish Sea, carrying a seven-strong crew from the Isle of Whithorn
11 Jan, pm: The weather turns bad so the skipper heads for shelter at Ramsey Bay, Isle of Man
1729 GMT, 11 Jan: Solway Harvester's last communication
1747 GMT, 11 Jan: Satellite picks up emergency position signal and a major search and rescue mission begins
12 Jan: The mission is called off at dusk after two unopened life rafts are found
15 Jan: The wreck of the Solway Harvester is found, lying in 35m of water, 11 miles east of the Isle of Man. The bodies of all seven crew members are on board

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