10/02/2017 BBC Newsline

Good evening, our top stories on BBC Newsline tonight...

A West Belfast father is found not guilty of killing his baby daughter.

Police failings in their search for

this young man were inexplicable, inexcusable

His family welcomed the corner's finding. It has been so hard to find

answers, the search was not done properly.

A lucky escape for a County Antrim family, as a slurry tanker crashes

Controversy over who will chair talks after the Assembly election -

one former American chairman rules himself out.

The geese who fly in from Iceland to winter in Belfast's Shankill.

On a bumper weekend of rugby, illness sees Ireland's Rory Best

While here in Belfast, Ulster aim for rehabilitation

And the cold weather continues this weekend,

I'll have your full forecast later in the programme.

A man has been found not guilty of murdering his baby daughter.

Caragh Walsh was three months old when she died in February 2014.

Her father - Christopher O'Neill from the Whiterock Road

in West Belfast - was accused of her murder.

The jury at Craigavon Crown Court, sitting in Armagh, this afternoon

Throughout the four-week trial, Christopher O'Neill denied any

suggestion that he found bye-bye Caragh, saying that he loved her to

bits. -Year-old from West Belfast was accused of killing his

three-month-old baby daughter by shooting her violently whilst in a

rage at her home in February 20 14. During the trial, he said that he

had shaken her, trying to revive her, she thought she was dying,

bye-bye Caragh died in hospital two days later.

In Craigavon Crown Court, the jury of 10,000,001 woman, fined by

majority verdict of at least ten to one was not guilty of killing his

baby daughter. -- the jury of one man, ten men, one women. The family

side with Billy. In the gallery behind him, the baby's mother stood

up and shouted, you killed my baby, my baby is dead because of you. She

was led from the court room with her family. Still in the dock, Mr

O'Neill put his head in his hands. When the judge said he was free to

leave, his family applauded and have Tim and said, we love you. Mr

O'Neill's solicitor said it had been a difficult case with no winners.

A coroner has criticised police for failing to find a young man

who died after going missing from a mental health unit.

His body was found ten weeks later close to the unit

22-year-old James Fenton had been identified as "high risk"

after telling staff he wanted to kill himself.

The family of James Fenton were at court this afternoon

for what marked the end of long, difficult and at times

It's been our horrendously long road, not just for a few months, but

for 6.5 years. It has been so, so hard.

22-year-old James Fenton went missing from Ward 27

at the Mental Health Unit in early July 2010.

And police were called in to search the grounds

They failed to find the missing man, whose body was discovered

less than 40 metres from the Mental Health

The coroner was a very critical of the police response when James

Fenton went missing from the mental health unit. He describe you feel

size inexplicable, -- describe refill yours as inexplicable and

excusable. It was said that he could have found them more quickly

although it could not be said with Steve would have been alive. --

could not have said whether he would have been alive.

A police ombudsman report was also critical of how the case

was handled and 12 officers were subsequently disciplined.

The PSNI has since changed its policy and practices on missing

persons as a direct result of the Fenton case.

The coroner described the actions of the hospital staff at the time

But he had harder words for the PSNI.

Joe McCrisken said consideration should have been given

to a police dog search, which may have led to Mr Fenton

being found shortly after he'd absconded.

Today, the PSNI issued a wholehearted apology to the Fenton

family for the police failings in this case.

I am hoping things will change. I know that the PSNI have changed. We

have changed how to search for a missing person but they cannot make

the excuse of not enough funding for mental health, things have to

change. How many more people have to lose their lives?

The coroner found that, due to advanced decomposition,

the cause of James Fenton's death was unascertainable,

although it was his view that the young man died

shortly after he climbed over the gate and absconded from

the Ulster Hospital's Mental Health Unit.

Mervyn Jess, BBC Newsline, at Belfast Coroner's Court.

A care worker found guilty of abusing elderly residents

at a care home in Dunmurray has been sentenced

41-year-old Lisa Cullen from Lagmore Drive in Dunmurray

was sentenced after pleading guilty to assaulting a whistleblower

from the home at a previous court appearance.

Our reporter, Dan Stanton, was in court.

Lisa Cullen leaving court after being found guilty of abusing

patients. She was released on bail because she is appealing her

sentence. The judge said she had shown no

remorse or change of attitude since being found guilty of the ill

treatment of elderly patients in her care. The judge sentenced her to a

total of four months in jail. The offences took place sometime

between November 2012 and December 2013 at this care home in Dunmurray.

Five elderly patients, two men, three women, were mistreated there.

Relatives of the patients at the Kilwee nursing home Clapton Court

after the sentence was passed. It was the hardest thing we have ever

done was to put our model there, and to find out that she hit my mother,

its soul destroying. She told my husband she had full Alzheimer's,

was like a baby, and was better to go out and run around traffic. She

was sentenced today after assaulting a whistle-blower on the grounds of

Lisburn Magistrates Court after a previous hearing. She had a vendetta

against me, she hated me for some reason, I do not know what, I have

been tortured, I have been just literally tortured from all of this

happening, she seems to have passed the blame onto me and be alone. Lisa

Cullen didn't say anything as she was being driven away from court.

A County Antrim man says he's been left in shock after a slurry tank

crashed through a wall into his front garden

Our north east reporter Sara Girvin has the story.

CCTV shows the dramatic moment a slurry tank crashes

It missed the home itself, in Glenavy, by less than a metre.

The homeowner, who was in the property at the time,

said he's just glad no-one was hurt.

Well, obviously quite shocked, but believed, it could have been so much

worse. If somebody was standing here, you can see where parts of the

wall have gone flying. It could have been worse if myself, children or

anyone had been there, postman, anybody at all!

The Belfast Road was closed for a time while the car,

tractor and slurry tank involved in the crash were removed.

Oil also had to be cleaned up, but the road has reopened.

Plans by the Health Minister Michelle O'Neill to tackle hospital

waiting lists have been criticised by the DUP Leader Arlene Foster.

In a letter, Mrs Foster responded to Minister O'Neill's

thirty-one million pound plan to treat patients who have been

The DUP leader accused Sinn Fein of electioneering.

But Sinn Fein hit back saying the DUP were trying

to deflect attention away from the RHI scandal.

Opposition to the Secretary of State chairing negotiations after

Sinn Fein, the SDLP and Alliance have doubted James Brokenshire's

suitability after he claimed inquiries into Troubles-related

killings were disproportionately focused on the police and army.

Here's our political correspondent Gareth Gordon.

The Secretary of State used an address to business leaders

in Belfast last night to call for an early return to power

But after his recent claim that there is too much focus

on Troubles killings carried out by the security forces,

is he the person to lead the negotiations?

If you look at his actions to date, for example his comments in relation

to British soldiers being given immunity, and the views of the

people of the North who want to stay within the European Union, his

one-sided partisan views on a lot of things, I don't believe he is an

honest broker. Unionists came to the Secretary

of State's defence. We have tried International chairs

in the past, with no success. We are part of the United Kingdom. The

Secretary of State is the Secretary of State. If they are going into

further negotiations, I would expect the Secretary of State to cheer

them. Sinn Fein want a period of direct rule. The person they are

criticising, in the form of James Brokenshire, will have

uncontrollable rule over Northern Ireland. From my perspective, I

think the people of Northern Ireland will not react well to Sinn Fein

arrogantly saying the British government should have no role in

the talks. But opposition to the James

Brokenshire having a talks role There is no way whatsoever now that

the Secretary of State can act as some kind of honest broker, he is

not independent, we need an independent, international figure

who chaired the legacy element of the talks, that's the only way this

can be done. The UK Secretary of State is a key player but has to

reflect the approach is taken to date and change his approach. His

approach to date has been and is viewed as many as being partisan,

which will not produce the results in terms of ensuring that we have

devolution restored to Northern Ireland.

It's one more potential obstacle standing in the way

Now, if the post-election negotiations require

an independent chairman, it won't be Senator George Mitchell.

He chaired the talks which led to the Good Friday Agreement,

of course, but in an interview at Queen's University

in Belfast today, he said the parties don't need him.

He's been speaking to BBC Newsline's Mark Simpson.

How have you been? The last time we met, he was during

crisis talks at Stormont, sort two decades later, is he ready to make a

comeback? I've done my tour of duty here. And I think, in every

situation, you constantly have to meet new challenges. And with new

people and new ideas. I know these men and women, they have been up to

it in the past, they gotten over much bigger hurdles than this, and

kept the process going, and I am confident they will do so again. The

Good Friday Agreement will be 20 years old next year. Some believe it

has now passed its sell by date. And there needs to be a new agreement? I

don't look at it in terms of a new agreement completely replacing an

old agreement. What I look at this as a process of change to meet the

changing circumstances and conditions. Many people watching

will be seeing BSG goes again, always so optimistic, cup holders

half full, he must be worried this agreement is falling apart in front

of our very eyes. -- many people will say, there goes again. I have

been in Northern Ireland, both at home in the process that led to the

agreement and to as Chancellor is this great institution, Queen's

University, to know the basic strength of the people of Northern

Ireland. One of the strengths is there a self-critical and sometimes

they are too much self-critical. I am often asked, isn't it terrible,

these problems we have politics? I said, you are asking an American

that question? You don't think we have problems? That exists all

around the world. Let's concentrate on solutions, rather than on how we

get there. He is now 83 years of age and still working. But as far as

Stormont is concerned, Mitchell has now retired. Mark Sampson, BBC

Newsline at Queen's University. Now, they're seasonal visitors

who return every year. But some of the Greylag geese

who migrate to Belfast have picked a rather unusual spot

to see out the winter. Our Agriculture and Environment

Correspondent, Conor Macauley, They've been coming

to the Shankill Estate for years. These Greylag geese fly

in from Iceland for the winter. It's said that, when they first

arrived, the word went out With an ample supply of food -

both the short grass they favour and what the locals regularly

provide - they've prospered. Greylag geese have been coming to

the Shankill estate for around ten years. These birds are very

site-specific so it is entirely possible that these are the

descendants of the original flock. They're a bit of a

novelty on the estate. The annual arrival a date

in the Shankill calendar. I have a funny feeling it's the same

keys. I know they all look the same, but... They all look the same, but

there is one that of colour around it, and that of colour, so someone

must be monitoring their flight. It may not be the obvious habitat,

what with the potential risks posed by pets and people,

but its working for the Greylags. It seems strange to people walking

past, this flock of geese in the Nir Biton but -- in an urban

environment, but they are safe, needing small amounts of water, and

they can feed here during the day. Every night, they leave

the estate for the lakes Clearly a bird that likes

to spread itself around A woman from Belfast says she had

no hesitation in undergoing major surgery in a bid

to help save a stranger's life. 23-year-old Jenna Armstrong

originally took part in a bone marrow test to help

save a child with cancer. When no match was found,

she was later told she was Our Health Correspondent

Marie-Louise Connolly What better way to celebrate

saving someone's life That's exactly what Jenna Armstrong

did three weeks ago, after donating her bone marrow

to a stranger. It was a no-brainer, it was one of

those things that in my head I had to do. It was a chance to

potentially help save someone in a particularly tricky situation and,

in my head, what I was doing was insignificant what they had been

going through. Last year, 23-year-old Jenna

and her family registered to become That means, if a suitable match

is found, they can donate blood When the call came, Jenna

and her mum travelled I had five injections into my back

and the extracted 1.2 litres of my bone marrow, the maximum they can

take for my height and weight for the person, they told me it was a

29-year-old man in America and he would be receiving the bone marrow

of the day after I needed it. It was emotional because it was before

Christmas and all I could think of was, if that was somebody in my

family, or my child, my brother, my sister, I would hope someone would

do what Jenna has done. Bone marrow is a spongy tissue found

in the hollow centres of some bones. The stem cells found

there are extremely healthy. When pumped into a sick person,

it can help save their life. Here at Queen's University Belfast,

clinical trials continue Basically, what it does is give them

a new immune system, different from the patient. One, and that new

immune system because it is different has the ability to fight

the disease and we know from long-term working on this in the

majority of people this will cure the disease. -- immune system

different from the patient's own. A champion Irish dancer,

Jenna's appealing to others to follow in her footsteps

and to become a blood Sport now and Ireland played Italy

tomorrow. Rory Best will have to sit it out because of injury.

It was a captain's run with a difference for Ireland, no captain

in attendance. Rory Best, who so often leads from the front, was back

in his Hotel room nursing a stomach bug he picked up overnight. The

other always think that crop up in the course of a week and I think how

we react and respond to it will hopefully allow us to continue the

preparation as seamlessly as possible and unfortunately these

things happened, but we are confident he will recover in time

for tomorrow. Before the Ireland team arrived here this afternoon,

another Irishman was that to grace the turf but not playing, the

Italian head coach Colin or she is plotting Ireland's downfall tomorrow

after having war on the show many times. From my point of duty is

someone great. Looking for the players to have a good environment

and working well. If you win tomorrow, I think he is going to be

happy, but for us as a team maybe not him as a person. The game

against Scotland last week left a lot to be desired but that approach

tomorrow will be different. As long as you are prepared and we know our

job, I think that will take care of it and we focus on what we've got to

do and trust the process. We have looked at it during the week and try

to revise and we are in a good place, but it is International Rugby

Board you have to go out there. So all eyes will be on the team

sheet tomorrow, hoping for the best of news.

Next to one of the most romantic and remarkable

Their camogs are in an All-Ireland final, their hurlers

and footballers are also one match away from an all-Ireland final.

They are of course Slaughtneil, who tomorrow take

on Dubiln and Leinster champions St Vincents in the club

One tiny club, one total community effort, the efforts for Slaughtneil

up almost as monumental as the mountains around and between these

played people. The next challenge is to be the best that the metropolis

of Dublin has to offer. Massive challenge ahead, we are under no

illusions how tough it will be, bringing huge physicality to the

game, they are fairly similar to Dublin seniors, it is going to be a

massive battle for us. There are three strands to this story. The

dream is Croke Park on St Patrick's Day. It has been so positive, not

just because of one, but because of the together. -- because of all

three together. We have to embrace that and continue. And now for the

next and final chapter. And best of luck to Slaughtneil. And

it has been chilly, what is in store this weekend?

Not getting any warmer unfortunately and pretty chilly already this

evening, temperature dropping close to freezing. If you are heading to

the all-star match this evening, if you have not left, wrap up warm. But

you can watch from the comfort of your own home on BBC Two. -- Ulster.

Tonight we are looking at widespread frost. If you fancy hill walking

this weekend or heading to the moors, there were some flurries of

snow today, so it will be slippery and it will be bitterly cold. Lots

of dry weather this weekend, just have lots of layers on. As I

mentioned, temperatures falling away tonight. Possibly as low as minus

five in parts of the countryside, not everywhere with sharp frost but

frost in many places to start Saturday morning and taking a while

for it to lift but we expect greater skies tomorrow and largely dry. The

frost it gradually coming out of that ground, cold breeze picking up

again, making it feel really better along parts of the East Coast.

Cloudy skies rollback in from the east during the afternoon, so the

best of the sunshine in the West, temperatures no different from

today. In that wind it will feel better. A lot milder in Italy,

temperatures in the low teens for Ireland's next match and you can

hear that live on BBC Radio Ulster if you are not lucky enough to be

going there. Tomorrow night back home, more cloud around, quite

breezy, some patches of snow, frost tomorrow will be more patchy and

Sunday another cold day. Generally dry but some flurries, quite cold,

cloudy and breezy. As we move into the new week, temperatures will

start to pick up. If you don't like the cold, we expect things to

gradually become less cold next week, is still quite breezy, dry

start, some sunshine, hopefully double figures by the middle of the

week. Cecilia, thank you. You have been

warned, wrap up warm.