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Brian Williams Prize - Dr Cheryl Lawther
Friday 08 July 2011
CSTPV is delighted to announce that on the 5th July 2011 Dr Cheryl Lawther was awarded the British Society of Criminology article prize (the Brian Williams Prize) for the best sole authored article that makes a valuable contribution to the further development of criminology by an early career academic. Her article, 'Securing' the Past: Policing and the Contest over Truth in Northern Ireland. British Journal of Criminology, 2010, 50, 3: 455-473 explores the views of the police and security forces towards truth recovery and dealing with the past in Northern Ireland.‘Securing’ the Past Policing and the Contest over Truth in Northern Ireland
Cheryl Lawther
Abstract
The question of whether Northern Ireland should have a formal truth recovery process has been amplified by the recent Report of the Consultative Group on the Past. Compared to the volume at which the truth recovery debate has been played out, relatively little is known about policing attitudes to this form of dealing with the past. This paper analyses the ways in which the history and context of policing in Northern Ireland have shaped attitudes towards truth recovery. It will be argued that differing opinions on the need for truth recovery are part of a debate over ‘ownership of the past’ between the ardent supporters of the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the new post-Patten managers and modernizers.
The full text of the article can be viewed here.[Athens Login required]
