Editing Irish National Liberation Army (section)

===Supergrass===
In the mid-1980s, the INLA was greatly weakened by splits and criminality within its own ranks, as well as the conviction of many of its members under the [[supergrass (informer)|supergrass scheme]]. [[Harry Kirkpatrick]], an INLA volunteer, was arrested in February 1983 on charges of five murders and subsequently agreed to give evidence against other INLA members.<ref>''Five life terms&nbsp;...'';[[The Times]]; 4 June 1983; pg1 col G</ref>

The INLA kidnapped Kirkpatrick's wife Elizabeth,<ref>''Wife seized by INLA''; The Times, 17 May 1983; pg32 col A</ref> and later kidnapped his sister and his stepfather too. All were released physically unharmed. INLA Chief of Staff Dominic McGlinchey is alleged to have killed Kirkpatrick's lifelong friend Gerard 'Sparky' Barkley because he may have revealed the whereabouts of the Kirkpatrick family members to the police.<ref name="LL">Lost Lives, 2007 edition, {{ISBN|1-84018-504-X}}</ref>

In May 1983, 10 men were charged with various offences on the basis of evidence from Kirkpatrick.  Those charged included IRSP vice-chairman Kevin McQuillan and former councillor Sean Flynn. IRSP chairman and INLA member [[Jimmy Brown (Irish nationalist)|James Brown]] was charged with the murder of a police officer.<ref>{{cite news | title=Ulster Youths throw&nbsp;... | newspaper=The Times | date=3 May 1983 | page=2 col A}}</ref>  Others escaped; Jim Barr, an IRSP member named by Kirkpatrick as part of the INLA, fled to the US where, having spent 17 months in jail, he won [[political asylum]] in 1993.<ref>USA v. James Barr: 84-CR-00272</ref><ref>Greer 1990</ref>{{Incomplete short citation|date=January 2025}}) 

In December 1985, 27 people were convicted on the basis of Kirkpatrick's statements.  By December 1986, 24 of those convictions had been overturned. Gerard Steenson was given five life sentences for the deaths of the same five people that Kirkpatrick himself had been convicted of, these included [[Ulster Defence Regiment]] soldier Colin Quinn, shot in Belfast in December 1980.<ref>McKittrick, David (12 October 2009). "[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/army-of-mavericks-lays-down-its-arms-1801337.html Army of mavericks lays down its arms]". [[The Independent]]. London. [https://web.archive.org/web/20180916130325/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/army-of-mavericks-lays-down-its-arms-1801337.html Archived] from the original on 16 September 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2022.</ref><ref>Clines, Francis X. (29 March 1987). "[https://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/29/world/a-dozen-die-as-ulster-s-rebels-feud.html A dozen die as Ulster's rebels feud]". [[The New York Times]]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160307071809/http://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/29/world/a-dozen-die-as-ulster-s-rebels-feud.html Archived] from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 27 April 2022.</ref><ref>"Diary of Events". Fortnight (232): 18. 1986. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/25550716 JSTOR 25550716.]</ref>

Holland and McDonald summarise the impact the supergrass trials had on the INLA:

{{Blockquote|The impact on the INLA had been devastating. Though many of its most active volunteers were incarcerated for several years, this proved not to be the most serious impact the supergrass trials and their aftermath had on the organisation. For more important was the suspicion and bitterness within the organisation that was planted during those years.  It would soon grow to deadly proportions.<ref name="Holland, Jack 1994" />}}