A process to select a jury for the inquest into the death of Belfast schoolboy Noah Donohoe will continue into a third day. The body of the 14-year-old was found in a storm drain in north Belfast on 27 June 2020, six days after he went missing. A post-mortem examination determined that his death was due to drowning.
The jury selection process began on Monday, with nearly 100 people still under consideration as of Tuesday morning. Several dozen people have since been excused by the coroner, Mr Justice Rooney, and the process of elimination is ongoing. Once the jury of 11 members has been selected, they will hear the opening details of the case.
The inquest will look into the circumstances of Noah’s death, focusing on how, when and where he died. Noah disappeared after cycling from his home in south Belfast to the Shore Road in the north of the city on the afternoon of 21 June 2020. The last reported sighting of him was around 6 PM that evening, and his body was found downstream in a storm drain six days later.
Noah’s mother, Fiona, returned to Laganside Court on Tuesday for the second day of the jury selection process. A jury was granted for the inquest following an application on behalf of Noah’s family during pre-inquest proceedings.