Young Northern Ireland barrister dies on holiday in Spain

Shona Killen, from Cloughey on the Ards Peninsula was 27-years-old.

She died in the early hours of Monday.

The Bar NI said in a statement: “It is with shock and great sadness that we write to inform members of the sudden passing of Shona Killen who died over the weekend while on holiday in Spain.

“Shona was called to the Bar in 2011 and was a well-known and highly respected young barrister.

“We would like to express our deepest condolences to her friends and family and we place them in our thoughts and prayers. We would also reassure them that the Bar will do all it can to support them during this most difficult time.”

Since her death a JustGiving page has been started to help raise money for a Alzheimer’s Society Memory Walk she and her boyfriend had intended to do at Stormont on September 17.

A message on the page reads: “On the early hours of 12 September 2016, we lost our good friend and work colleague, Shona Killen when she passed away whilst on holiday in Spain.”

The message adds: “The Alzheimer’s Society was a charity very close to her heart. She did the memory walk every year and was always determined to raise as much money as she could.

“This team page has been set up for her friends and work colleagues who wish to join us in taking part in the memory walk for Shona.”