Family speaks of IRA murders of Derry police reservist father and daughter on 50th anniversary

Bill Baggley, a Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) reservist from Blackburn Crescent in the Woodburn area, was shot dead by the IRA fifty years ago next week.

The 43-year-old father of three, who worked as an accountant, was on patrol with a colleague when he was gunned down on the Dungiven Road on January 29, 1974.

Bill’s son and daughter Graham and Lorraine remember him this week as his 50th anniversary approaches.

“Dad was a special man. His family meant everything to him and he cherished mum and was so very proud of each of his children.

"He was also an incredibly hard worker and wanted us to be provided for. He had a great mind and was a well respected accountant.

“He served 22 years with the Royal Navy as a Chief Petty Officer. He also had a strong sense of what was right and wrong and felt compelled to step forward and join the Police Reserve.

"He loved his country and community and could not stand by and do nothing whilst terrorism tore the place to pieces,” they said, in a statement.

The siblings recounted the traumatic details of their father’s murder.

“On January 29, 1974 dad was on duty and was located at Dungiven Road, Londonderry when Provisional IRA gunmen opened fire on him and his colleague who was another Reserve Police Officer. Dad perished but mercifully his colleague survived the gun attack.

“Dad was just 43-year-old when he was murdered. He had so much life still to live. His murder was met with shock and revulsion across the community. He was liked by many people.

“Things were never the same for mummy and us from that day forward. A big piece of her was taken away when daddy’s life was stolen."

Two-and-a-half years after Mr. Baggley was murdered, Graham and Lorraine’s sister Linda, was also shot dead by the IRA, metres from where her father lost his life.

The 19-year-old sales assistant had followed her father’s footsteps into the RUC reserve. She was gunned down near the bottom of Chapel Road.

Like Mr. Baggley, she had been patrolling with a RUC colleague, when she was shot dead.

A ‘Journal report in the aftermath of the shooting on May 23, 1976, stated that they were ‘patrolling at the foot of Chapel Road shortly before eleven o’clock when two gunmen stepped out from an entrance and fired several shots at point blank range’.

“They raced away as the two officers fell, the 19-years-old girl shot in the head and her companion hit in the thigh and shoulder,” this paper reported.

Ms. Baggley died from her injuries on June 2, 1976. Graham and Lorraine spoke of the horrific impact of the killing on their family.

“Our sister Linda was very close to daddy and she was adamant that she wanted to follow him into the police. Nothing was going to stop her from doing so. She was a wonderful sister.

“Just two years after dad was murdered on May 23, 1976 Linda was shot by Provisional IRA terrorists. It was less than 100 yards away from the spot he had been callously murdered.

“She died in hospital on June 2, 1976 from her injuries. Linda was the first female police officer to be shot through terrorism, and sadly she wasn’t the last.

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“That period going to the hospital was horrific for us all. We hoped she might pull through but alas her injuries were just too serious. Linda was just a young girl at the beginning of her life. She was just 19-years-old, single and she worked as a sales assistant. She was great with people.

“Fifty years in some ways is a huge length of time, but in other ways it is not. The emotions we feel now as we mark this milestone anniversary are still raw. We grieve for the life we failed to have. We grieve for the father and sister we were so blessed to have.

“Daddy must never be forgotten and neither should Linda. That is the very least they’re due at this stage. And we will never accept the lies of terrorism and their apologists which suggest they were legitimate targets and that there was ‘no alternative’ to murdering them - of course there was, there always was.

"Daddy and Linda were trying to protect the community; they did not have hatred in their hearts for their neighbours. We will forever seek to protect the integrity of the people they were,” concluded their statement.

Director of South East Fermanagh Foundation Kenny Donaldson stated: "The Baggley family connection are well respected in Londonderry and further afield. To have a husband and father stolen away was horrific but for this to be followed by one of his treasured daughters was particularly harrowing.

"The Baggley family are connected with SEFF and they represent the very best of values; dignity, a strong work ethic, a sense of right and wrong, fairness and common decency.

"Bill Baggley was well respected by his contemporaries as a good policeman and someone you'd want in your corner. The fact his daughter Linda also followed him into policing illustrates the strong sense of public service present within the family.

"There has been little public discourse around the suffering of the Baggley family, little concern has been shown outside of those most connected to them.

"It is important on this milestone anniversary that Bill's name comes to the fore and that the positive legacy that he and Linda represent is afforded due recognition and respect," said Mr. Donaldson.

Special service for 1972 Troubles victims at Derry cathedral