INVERNESS SHERIFF COURT ROUND-UP: Attempted murder, domestic abusers and a heartbreaking FAI among last month’s court business
Inverness Sheriff Court saw a huge mix of criminal business in November. Here's our recap of some of the cases that made the headlines last month.
Three people are to stand trial charged with the murder of an Inverness man - including his estranged wife. Craig Hayden (29), from Alness, Leon Headey (22), from Liverpool, and Samantha Jane MacGillivray (32) are accused of a fatal attack on Ross MacGillivray on November 11 last year.
o A 25-year-old man who endangered his ex-partner's life by "kicking her head and body like a football" has been jailed at Inverness Sheriff Court. During his trial, he claimed he could not have carried out the life-threatening violence because he was in bed with his new girlfriend at the time. o A beggar was assaulted by his ex-partner as he sat in an Inverness city centre street looking for money. Lorraine Beavis, who was then in an altercation with police officers, has been sentenced at Inverness Sheriff Court. o A 21-year-old man was drunk when he entered an Inverness shop after 7am and began pulling items off the shelves. The staff member asked him to stop before being assaulted. o A man who tried to murder his elderly, wheelchair-bound mother in a drink-fuelled attack on New Year's Day has been jailed for 10 years. During the assault Bruce Davis (53) tried to strangle Thomasina McAskill, known as Chrissy, with her own jumper in her own home. o An Inverness woman ended her relationship with her boyfriend as he had spent most of the time serving a prison sentence. Inverness Sheriff Court heard the split occurred three months before 33-year-old Connor Bennett, also from Inverness and designated as an Inverness prisoner, was released on May 3. o A church missionary who was expecting to reunite with his vulnerable wife against whom he conducted a campaign of domestic assault and abuse was distraught when the news was broken to him in court that she didn't want him back. A sheriff had previously called the case "very disturbing" and that he had "deep concerns" about the prospect of the couple reuniting. o A Drumnadrochit man has admitted ill-treating two dogs and failing to feed them over a two-month period. Shih tzu Teddy died and collie Archie was relocated, hears Inverness Sheriff Court. o A health and safety adviser for a construction company broke down in tears today during a Fatal Accident Inquiry into the horrific death of Chloe Morrison, who died after a part of a lorry struck her as she walked with her mother near Loch Ness. Darren Van der Boon was giving evidence at Inverness Sheriff Court when he suddenly began weeping and turned to the woman's parents and sister in the public benches and sobbed: "I am so sorry." o A 25-year-old Inverness man who savagely attacked his ex partner and tried to throttle her last summer will be sentenced next month, after being jailed for 40 months last week for beating up the same woman a second time earlier this year. Sheriff David Harvie criticised William MacFarlane, of Mackay Road, Inverness for "kicking her head and body like a football" on February 11 this year after he went to her home in Parkfield View, Inverness. o A Nairn man who allowed a dog to starve to death after being asked to look after it for its owner has been jailed for seven months. Brian Farmer (25), of Church Street, Nairn appeared at Inverness Sheriff Court in July last year and pleaded guilty to causing the dog unnecessary suffering by failing to provide it with access to food or water whereby it starved to death. o Two Inverness prisoners fell out as one kept the other awake at night in the cell they shared. But it was lights out for the annoying cellmate on January 10 this year when 42-year-old Owen Grant punched him once in the face, knocking the man unconscious and leaving his victim with a deep cut to his face and cheek. o A 46-year-old, who twice discarded some of his GBP13,000 haul, is set to enter residential rehab while continuing on a court imposed drug treatment order to try and keep out of jail. o A Chinese tourist who killed a motorcyclist heading for the Highlands to fulfil a "bucket list" wish has been jailed for 14 months. Die Huang (51) was driving on the wrong side of the A9 Inverness to Pitlochry road when she collided with a Harley Davidson ridden by Andrew MacPherson who was thrown into the air and suffered catastrophic injuries. o A German Shepherd dog who bit a delivery driver on the hand has been shown mercy by a sheriff who decided against ordering that the animal should be destroyed. But 66-year-old owner Janet MacFarlane, was instructed by Sheriff Sara Matheson to keep Diego muzzled and on a lead when out in public and to ensure it was always under control. o Police abandoned the pursuit of a motorist who was swerving about the road and driving along the wrong side of the carriageway because it was too dangerous at a peak traffic time. Officers began following 28-year-old Darryl Mackay, of Fuaran, Inver at around 10am on November 5 last year when they saw him driving out of Alamein Drive in Inverness. o A 'victim-blaming' rapist who spent more than a decade subjecting a woman to repeated rapes and sexual assaults has been jailed for eight years. Alastair Coote (61) assaulted the female, who cannot be named for legal reasons, between April 2008 and June 2022 at locations in Inverness and Ross-shire. o A sheriff expressed his sadness at having to send two brothers to a Young Offender's Institution for 20 months after they admitted a string of violent offences where a man was attacked to the danger of his life and knocked unconscious. One of them also appeared in his own right after he tried to escape from the court while he was given his first custodial sentence. o 
View our fact sheet on court reporting here
[19]References