'New IRA' leader should never have been convicted of dissident murder, lawyers argue

A 49-year-old man identified by gardaí as leader of the New IRA is challenging his murder conviction at the Court of Appeal, with his defence team arguing the conviction should be quashed as unsafe. Kevin Braney was found guilty by the Special Criminal Court in February 2019 of the premeditated murder of Peter Butterly, shot dead outside The Huntsman Inn near Gormanston, County Meath on 6 March 2013. He received a life sentence. Braney's appeal raises two principal grounds. His counsel contends that surveillance authorisation breached his privacy rights when gardaí deployed a listening device at a fast-food outlet in Charlestown Shopping Centre, Finglas without proper district court approval. The defence argues that a superintendent in County Meath could have sought judicial authorisation at nearby Balbriggan District Court rather than invoking emergency powers under the Criminal Law (Surveillance) Act 2009. The State's counsel countered that the superintendent acted appropriately given time constraints when the criminal meeting was identified. The appeal also challenges the reliability of David Cullen, a self-confessed accomplice who became the State's principal witness in exchange for a reduced sentence. Braney's barrister submitted that the trial relied excessively on Cullen's evidence, noting that judges had previously criticised Cullen and suggested he had committed perjury in earlier proceedings. Despite this judicial concern, Cullen was not prosecuted, with authorities citing fears he would not return to Ireland, as he now resides in a protection programme abroad. The prosecution maintains that circumstantial evidence—including Braney's documented movements with associates before and after the killing—provided a compelling independent case. A subsequent meeting at Charlestown Shopping Centre the day after the shooting was presented as a debriefing. Three other men have previously received life sentences for the murder. The three-judge panel reserved judgment following submissions.