A violent brute who strangled former companions has been convicted of three counts of tried homicide. Malcolm ‘Malky’ McDougal had denied proscribing the ladies’s respiratory to their harm and to the hazard of their lives in a marketing campaign of home abuse spanning 9 years.
A jury of 14 on the excessive Courtroom in Livingston heard disturbing proof of his brutal, behind-closed-doors assaults, which included punching and kicking his terrified victims earlier than grabbing them by the throat and choking them by making use of strain till they handed out.
McDougal, 43, satirically a former lifeguard, claimed in his personal defence that the three girls he tried to kill all knew one another and had conspired to get him convicted by mendacity in courtroom. Nevertheless, he admitted that he had already served a lot of jail sentences and had quite a few earlier convictions for home violence, public dysfunction and bail offences.
Jurors rejected his declare that he was harmless and took 5 hours to return three unanimous verdicts and three majority verdicts discovering him responsible. Along with being discovered responsible of trying to homicide Sweet Baldock, Jade Davidson and Katie Wilson, McDougal was convicted of assaulting two different former companions Carol Innes and Donna Johnson and Jade’s brother Ross.
Sweet, 37, gave proof of a tumultuous relationship, throughout which she stabbed the accused, however insisted she had been the sufferer of home abuse at his arms too. She instructed how he attacked her at addresses in West Lothian, between June 2011 and Could 2013, repeatedly punching her, kicking her and seizing her by the throat and strangling her.
A witness warrant was issued for her arrest after she didn't attend courtroom and he or she was subsequently sentenced to 2 weeks in jail for contempt.
Jade, 33, instructed how he had strangled her twice throughout their abusive relationship, the second time utilizing each arms.
She mentioned: “He simply grabbed me by the throat in the lounge and strangled me so exhausting that I misplaced consciousness. He was pushing proper down in order that I couldn’t breathe in any respect. I might say (for) greater than a minute for me to lose consciousness."
She went on: “He grabbed me by the throat to silence me. He was screaming in my face ‘Simply shut up!’ I used to be flat on my again – terrified. Once you’re shedding consciousness it’s a bizarre feeling. All the pieces goes fuzzy and quiet. It’s a surreal feeling and I bear in mind pondering I used to be going to die.”
She added that she had “plenty of black marks” round her neck afterwards.
Katie, 24, instructed how a "pink mist" came visiting McDougal and his eyes went "a bit loopy" as he tried to homicide her. She mentioned he repeatedly choked her and restricted her respiratory throughout an affair which lasted practically two years.
She mentioned: “The primary time that he attacked me it was simply strangling concerned and just a little little bit of slapping across the face. He positioned his two arms on my neck – he used to say it will solely take 5 minutes to kill somebody by strangling – and continued to squeeze.
“It felt just like the longest couple of minutes of my life. I struggled and mentioned: ‘Get off me! I can’t breathe!' I type of simply blacked out, nearly as if I wasn’t there any extra. I recall the sensation afterwards and the ache, a reminder of the best way he would squeeze.”
Requested how she felt when she got here again spherical, she mentioned: “Type of dizzy, dazed. I simply walked away from the scenario."
She additionally gave proof that McDougal threw her right into a bathe tray and put his foot on her throat till she was struggling for breath. She mentioned he grabbed her by the hair and held her head below chilly water for 5 minutes.
She mentioned: “He was calling me a grimy sl*t as a result of he’d accused me of dishonest on him. He was drunk. He’d drunk two bottles of cider – six litres in whole.”
She additionally instructed how McDougal would additionally chunk her and spit on her and sometimes burned her leg with a cigarette lighter.
Following the jury’s verdicts, advocate depute Jonathan Campbell moved for sentence and submitted sufferer affect statements from the three tried homicide victims. He additionally requested the courtroom to think about imposing non harassment orders banning the accused from contacting his ex-partners.
Decide Alison Stirling mentioned she wished a prison justice social work report into McDougal’s background earlier than passing sentence at Edinburgh Excessive Courtroom on 6 September. She continued the NHO functions till then.
The accused, who has been in custody since March 18, 2021, confirmed no emotion as he was handcuffed and led to the cells.
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