The two soldiers were sentenced to life imprisonment but were freed after serving only six years. Mrs McBride's solicitors, Madden and Finucane, are seeking a declaration that the MoD's decision is in breach of Queen's Regulations which state it is mandatory to discharge soldiers imprisoned by a civil court, unless there are exceptional reasons. "No exceptional reasons exist justifying departure from the mandatory regulation," the solicitors claim in papers lodged in court.
The papers go on to attack the MoD and Army Board by stating: "Their lack of censure not only enhances the risk that the Guardsmen will murder again but also affords them the opportunity to do so by providing them with weapons." The papers claim that in the past 10 years 2,002 soldiers have been disharged under Queen's Regulations - the vast majority if not all for lesser offences than murder.
A spokesperson for the Pat Finucane Centre said, "The only occasions whereby soldiers convicted of murder have benefited from the 'exceptional circumstances' clause have been where the victim was Irish. This demonstrates the underlying racisim behind this decision. The Army Board ruling has now been condemned by all the parties in Dail Eireann and the majority of elected representatives in the Northern assembly. We are confident that the Army Board ruling will be overturned."