James Henry Babington
Encyclopedia
James Henry Babington, Provisional Irish Republican Army
murder victim, killed 4 October 1989, aged 52.
analyst
shot by the IRA on his way to work on Cavehill Road, where he resided.
His wife, working as a domestic assistant at Belfast City Hospital
, heard of the shooting on the radio
, but not until she was called into an office at 1:30 p.m. was she informed that it was her husband.
Babington had been killed by the IRA by mistake; they believed him to be an Andersontown Catholic whose son was the victim of a punishment
shooting
by the IRA which went badly wrong. Babington was wrongly accused after his death of participating in a number of gun attacks, including an attempt to kill Sinn Fein
publicity
director, Danny Morrison
.
Babington had no connection to any paramilitary organisation. This was confirmed by the coroner
, and by the IRA themselves in a brief statement in the Republican News
. Mrs. Babington went to a Sinn Fein office after the funeral but was escorted out of the building.
Babington was survived by his wife and three children. No one was ever tried for his killing.
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
murder victim, killed 4 October 1989, aged 52.
Overview
Babington was a laboratoryLaboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
analyst
Analyst
Analyst generally is a term for an individual of whom or which the primary function is a deep examination of a specific, limited area and may mean:* Accounting analyst, an accounting analyst evaluates and interprets public company financial statements...
shot by the IRA on his way to work on Cavehill Road, where he resided.
His wife, working as a domestic assistant at Belfast City Hospital
Belfast City Hospital
The Belfast City Hospital located in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is a 900-bed modern university teaching hospital providing local acute services and key regional specialities. Its distinctive tower block dominates the Belfast skyline being the fourth tallest storeyed building in Ireland...
, heard of the shooting on the radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
, but not until she was called into an office at 1:30 p.m. was she informed that it was her husband.
Babington had been killed by the IRA by mistake; they believed him to be an Andersontown Catholic whose son was the victim of a punishment
Punishment
Punishment is the authoritative imposition of something negative or unpleasant on a person or animal in response to behavior deemed wrong by an individual or group....
shooting
Shooting
Shooting is the act or process of firing rifles, shotguns or other projectile weapons such as bows or crossbows. Even the firing of artillery, rockets and missiles can be called shooting. A person who specializes in shooting is a marksman...
by the IRA which went badly wrong. Babington was wrongly accused after his death of participating in a number of gun attacks, including an attempt to kill Sinn Fein
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
publicity
Publicity
Publicity is the deliberate attempt to manage the public's perception of a subject. The subjects of publicity include people , goods and services, organizations of all kinds, and works of art or entertainment.From a marketing perspective, publicity is one component of promotion which is one...
director, Danny Morrison
Danny Morrison
Daniel Morrison is the name of:* Dan Morrison , American professional wrestler* Dan Morrison , umpire in Major League Baseball* Dan Morrison , American football coach for the SMU Mustangs...
.
Babington had no connection to any paramilitary organisation. This was confirmed by the coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
, and by the IRA themselves in a brief statement in the Republican News
Republican News
Republican News was a longstanding newspaper/magazine published by Sinn Féin. Following the split in physical force Irish republicanism in the late 1960s between the Officials and the Provisionals Republican News was a longstanding newspaper/magazine published by Sinn Féin. Following the split in...
. Mrs. Babington went to a Sinn Fein office after the funeral but was escorted out of the building.
Babington was survived by his wife and three children. No one was ever tried for his killing.
See also
- Mary Travers (murder victim)Mary Travers (murder victim)Mary Travers was a teacher killed by the IRA on the 8 April, 1984.-Overview:Travers was a twenty-two year old Catholic and one of two daughters of Tom Travers, a magistrate. She, her father, and mother, had just left St Brigid's Catholic Church in Derryvolgie Avenue in south Belfast when gunmen...
- Joanne Mathers
- The Hanna familyThe Hanna familyRobert James Hanna, Maureen Hanna and their only child David Hanna were killed by a Provisional Irish Republican Army bomb on 23 July 1988.-Overview:Robert Hanna was a forty-five year old building contractor married to Maureen, aged forty-four...
- Gillian JohnstonGillian JohnstonGillian Johnston, chemist and shop worker, killed by the IRA, 18 March 1988, aged 21.-Overview:Johnston was a twenty-one year old chemist and shop worker from Tonaghgorm, Legg, near Belleek, County Fermanagh. She was engaged for two years, having dated her fiance since she was fifteen...
- Thomas Oliver (farmer)Thomas Oliver (farmer)Thomas Oliver, farmer, killed by the IRA on 19 July 1991.-Overview:A farmer with no connection to paramilitary group or the security forces, Oliver was a thirty-seven year-old father of seven children, and a native of Riverstown on the Cooley peninsula, near Dundalk...