Funeral held for detective shot in Dublin

Jury returns verdict of ‘wilful murder’

Dublin, 3 December 1919 - The funeral has taken place of Detective Sergeant John Barton, who died after being shot on College Street in Dublin on Saturday 29 November. The policeman was buried in his native Kerry, following a Requiem Mass at the Firies Church.

The body of the deceased was transported to Kerry from Dublin, moving in a cortege from the village of Keel. The large turnout included members of the Dublin Metropolitan Police. 

Wreaths were sent by the Lord Chief Justice, the Chief Commissioner of Police, the Assistant Commissioner of the DMP, as well as by police officers and men of the detective department in Dublin Castle.

A wreath from the Sergeants' mess, RAS Corps, Royal Barracks for the funeral of Sergeant Barton. (Image: Irish Independent, 2 December 1919)

The inquest
An inquest into the shooting of Sergeant Barton returned a verdict of ‘wilful murder’ and declared his killing to be a ‘loss to the citizens of Dublin’. The jury added their condemnation of this and similar recent ‘outrages’.

Witnesses who provided evidence to the inquest included police colleagues of the deceased detective. One of them, Constable H. Higgins said he was on duty at the corner of College Street and Westmoreland Street when he heard two or three shots, then a pause, and then two more. After the last shot, he said a man, 5 ft 6 inches or so in height, wearing breeches and leggings and a soft hat, rushed past him in the direction of Westmoreland Street. Nobody has been arrested.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Laurence O’Neill, who attended the inquest, has expressed his sympathy to Sergeant Barton’s family and described the deceased detective as a ‘great asset’ to the city of Dublin and ‘hard to replace’. He added, however, that in making such comments, he did not ‘wish to reflect upon any cause whatever. Do not let it be said that I wish, as Lord Mayor of this city, to help any government who have not the confidence of the people.’

Relatives of Sergeant Barton who attended the inquest. Left to right - Denis Barton, brother; J. Fleming, brother-in-law; D.J. Barton, and John Keane, cousins. 

Recent ‘outrages’
The shooting of Detective John Barton is the latest of a series of attacks on police arising out of the recent political disturbances.

On 10 November, Detective Officer Thomas Wharton was shot near St Stephen’s Green. A civilian, Gertie O’Hanlon, was also wounded in this attack. Both victims are recovering well. 

Police have recently arrested a man, believed to be an ex-soldier, for this incident. The arrested man’s name is James Hurley with an address on Kevin Street and it is expected that he will soon be formally charged before a police magistrate.

Mr Justice Kenny, speaking at the opening of the Winter Assizes, addressed the increase in acts of violence towards police. He described these attacks as ‘dastardly and wanton’ and an editorial in the Irish Independent suggests that this view is shared by the ‘community as a whole’ and that ‘all right-thinking men deplore these awful occurrences’.

[Editor's note: This is an article from Century Ireland, a fortnightly online newspaper, written from the perspective of a journalist 100 years ago, based on news reports of the time.]