McLaughlin abscond sends out a signal that bail is optional

These issues are not only unresolved, they have barely been discussed.

McLaughlin had been jailed in 2011 for offences in relation to a significant cache of weapons found in 2009.

This newspaper previously reported that taking into account legal factors in the case, he could have faced a sentence of perhaps 15 years in prison. He was given only four-and-a-half years (half on licence) and was free by late 2o11.

Sentences for serious dissident republican terrorist convictions have been light in recent years.

At the end 2012, McLaughlin was charged with preparing terrorist acts in relation to the murder of prison officer David Black. He was freed on bail in May 2014, and his bail conditions were relaxed, including the removal of his tag.

McLaughlin has been acquitted of the Black charge. His abscond has not led to charges. In 2016, when he had to sign with police regularly, it emerged he had been unseen for five weeks. He was arrested months later in Donegal.

The PSNI is under investigation by the Police Ombudsman for the saga. But this is not just a police failing. It is a weakness in the criminal justice system handling of people charged with terror offences, as well as those convicted.

McLaughlin faces no sanction for absconding. This sends out a signal that bail is optional.