Noah Donohoe inquest: Everything you need to know after day one at Laganside Court

Need to know

The inquest into the death of Noah Donohoe got underway at Laganside Court on Thursday, January 22

1. The jury selection was completed on Thursday, January 22, after four days, allowing the inquest hearing to begin shortly afterwards. The jury consists of nine men and two women.
2. Coroner Mr Justice Rooney began the proceedings by noting the length of time Noah’s mum Fiona has waited for the inquest to take place and the distressing impact it will have on her.
3. The coroner told the jury they must remain neutral and the inquest was about establishing the facts regarding Noah’s death and not to decide on criminal or civil liability. They were also told to ignore the publicity surrounding the inquest.
4. The inquest could last up to 12-weeks and not be completed until the end of March.
5. Counsel for the coroner Peter Coll KC began his opening statement talking about Noah’s movements, highlighting CCTV footage that showed Noah cycling in North Belfast wearing no clothes on the evening he went missing. He also said the disappearance was out of character for the teenager and post-mortem evidence concluded Noah had drowned.
6. The barrister said the jury would hear evidence that the bars on a storm drain into a culvert system in the north of the city were far enough apart for Noah to pass through.
7. A recording of the phonecall Fiona Donohoe made to police on the evening he went missing was played to the jury. In it she says her son had “not been himself” and that she was concerned for his safety. She said she had found him crying in his room earlier in the day before he left his Belfast home.
8. Fiona said it was out of character for her son to be out late on the day he went missing. She also told police her son had been “overprotective” and kept giving her hugs and telling her he loved her earlier in the day.
9. Fiona told the inquest about Noah’s life growing up and said he had a “love of books and learning”. She said: “He was an upbeat, positive, beautiful, young gent who embraced anything that came his way with bright enthusiasm.” “He inspired me with his mentality that anything can be overcome.”
10. Fiona said she had been “concerned” about the impact of the Covid lockdown on her son. She told the inquest the weekend before Noah went missing he had made plans with two friends to go to Cavehill in north Belfast, but later decided not to go.
11. She said she was taken “completely by surprise” when she learnt her son had left his home late at night the day before he disappeared. She said that her son knew how important it was to come home on time when he left the house.
12. Fiona told the inquest that she had an instinct something was not right when Noah did not come home. She said she was “living a nightmare” during the search for him.
13. Fiona raised concerns regarding the PSNI’s handling of the search operation and was critical of a PSNI theory during the period of Noah’s disappearance that the schoolboy had suffered a concussion after suffering a head injury.
14. Fiona said she was horrified that Noah would have been able to access a storm drain where his body was later found.
15. Fiona said she feels a “blind eye” was turned to evidence about what happened to her son.

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