Real IRA founder loses appeal on terror conviction

DUBLIN (AP) — The founder of the Real IRA paramilitary group, responsible for the deadliest bombing in Irish history, failed Friday to have his 2003 conviction for “directing terror” overturned.

Lawyers for Michael McKevitt, who in 2003 became the first person in the Republic of Ireland to be convicted of the charge, had argued that the 63-year-old should be freed from prison immediately. They contended that the warrant used to search his home was illegal, and McKevitt was denied the right to a fair trial because he had fired his own lawyers midway through his original trial.