Dr Finian Fallon, the son of a garda who was murdered by suspected republican paramilitaries in Dublin in 1970, has suggested there's enough new information to warrant reopening the inquest into his father's death.
Richard Fallon was killed by bank robbers - suspected of being members of a republican splinter group called Saor Éire - at Arran Quay in Dublin.
The unarmed garda was shot twice, and is thought to have died before he hit the ground.
Dr Fallon has now written to the coroner's office to ask for the inquest to be reopened.
Appearing on the Pat Kenny Show today almost 50 years after his father's death, Dr Fallon explained the impact of the 1970 murder.
He said: "It was a huge event in Ireland at the time - he was the first policeman in the South who was killed during the Troubles, and it was quite a shock I think to the nation.
"There were five children [in the family]... I was the youngest - I was four - and the oldest at the time was 12.
"I have some vivid, specific memories of the time - I can remember the day of the funeral, walking up to the graveside with a sea of black coats around me... I remember throwing a daffodil into my father's grave, and then nearly falling in after it and having to be pulled out."
Dr Fallon added: "It has a huge impact on the family, in terms of the family dynamic.
"My mother certainly was devastated by the death. She never really recovered from it... she died young at the age of 56... As my brother said at the graveyard, she died of a broken heart.
"Two of my brothers - Joseph and Damien - both died young, in their early 40s... I believe partly at least as a result of the trauma that we experienced as a family."
Call for new inquest
Dr Fallon said there's been a lot of kindness shown to his family by the State - but he doesn't believe the truth of the matter has been 'brought out into the open'.
Following a recent radio appearance, Dr Fallon says he was approached by a retired garda detective sergeant.
The retired garda alleged that when he was a member of the force in Dundalk he was told to stand down on a potential raid on a house in the town - a raid that was allegedly meant to happen a week before Richard's murder.
Dr Fallon suggests there may have been a "good outcome" for his father had the raid gone ahead.
However, he also believes there were "contradictory and conflicting" elements within the State at the time - one that was attempting to maintain peace, but another that was willing to "break the law and engage in illegal importation of arms".
On the subject of any future inquest, Dr Fallon observed: "I'm not looking for anybody to be jailed, or for anyone to punished for this.
"I certainly would like the truth to be explored in the public domain.
"I think there still are enough people alive with direct information, and there's enough documentation that's come out since the original inquest that would corroborate what I'm alleging."
