The trial at Kilmarnock high court.
High court.
The Trial.
The Trial at the High court Kilmarnock.
The Trial: On Tuesday March 1st 2005 at Kilmarnock High Court, Brendan Dixon and Patrick Docherty were both found guilty of the murder of Margaret Irvine.Both men were given life sentences for a crime they did not commit. Colin Miller, the third accused was found not proven.
There was no evidence in the case. The case was based on hearsay and circumstantial evidence. The police recovered DNA and footprints from the murder scene that did not belong to any of the accused. A number of key witnesses, who are not strangers to the police had themselves being questioned about the murder. Several of theses witnesses against Brendan and Patrick were proven in court to have lied while giving evidence.
The Murder: On Sunday September 28th 2003, 91 year old Galston woman Margaret Irvine was murdered. She was found by her carer at 4.50pm she had been gagged and had her hands tied behind her back with a belt. The cause of death was asphyxia due to her choking on the duster that had been placed in her mouth. Mrs Irvine was last seen alive at 7.00am by the carer who came in to make her breakfast. She instructed the carer to leave the door unlocked to enable others to gain entry.
Mrs Irvine was described as been mentally alert although she was housebound.
On October 31st 2003 Brendan Dixon and Patrick Docherty were both charged with the murder of Margaret Irvine. Colin Miller was charged almost a year later.
The original suspect however was Colin Miller, who met Brendan Dixon in Kilmarnock HMP.(Colin Miller was in for a week for non-payment of fines and Brendan Dixon was in for smashing his ex-girlfriends windows.) " which was dropped during trial as it fitted in with Brendan's alibi," Colin Miller was attacked by cons whilst in prison for his part of the murder, Brendan tries to reassure him by telling him the police were also putting him and Patrick Docherty forward as suspects and many other known criminals. As soon as he got released from prison Colin Miller went to the police and made a third statement, only this time he says he says he saw Brendan Dixon and Patrick Docherty, In Catherine Drive. He changes this to a fourth statement to seeing them outside Mrs Irvine's house. Colin Miller then becomes chief witness ,that is until almost a year later when the PF realises that Colin Miller couldn't have seen anyone from where he states, and eventually after ten months is charged with Mrs Irvine's murder; Colin Miller was the only witness that claimed to have seen Brendan and Patrick near the scene on the morning of the murder. It was proven in court that Colin Miller could not have seen Brendan or Patrick from the location that he claimed to have been at. Colin Miller was the only person spotted near the scene that morning.
Mrs Paton a neighbour of Mrs Irvine, stated in court that she was up early that Sunday morning 28th September 2003. She looked out her window and seen Colin Miller three times, at 6.00am, 6.40am and again at 7.00am. However witnesses for Colin Miller stated in court that he spent the Saturday night at their house. They stated he did not leave their house until 7.50am on the morning of the murder. Later that morning Colin Miller was at another friends house. After receiving a text message, around 10 am Colin Miller went outside to make a phone call. Shortly after he returned to the house,He was in a rage and hit his friend on the face and head with a hammer. Another neighbour of Mrs Irvine was Mrs Mc Cartney, in court she stated, at around 10 am she heard a male voice shouting are you there? she looked out her window and seen a male from the back standing in the kitchen of the murder scene.
She also stated that she noticed a male stranger passing by her house early on the morning of the murder. Both Brendan and Patrick had separate alibis to state that they were no where near the Galston vicinity on the morning Sunday 28th September 2003 when Mrs Irvine was murdered
If capital punishment was still carried out in Britain today, Two innocent men would not be alive to reveal the corruption and underhand dealings in a judicial system in Scotland.
No justice has been done for Mrs Irvine and her family. Galston is a small community; and the murderers of Margaret Irvine must be known to someone in the East Ayrshire area.
There was no evidence in the case. The case was based on hearsay and circumstantial evidence. The police recovered DNA and footprints from the murder scene that did not belong to any of the accused. A number of key witnesses, who are not strangers to the police had themselves being questioned about the murder. Several of theses witnesses against Brendan and Patrick were proven in court to have lied while giving evidence.
The Murder: On Sunday September 28th 2003, 91 year old Galston woman Margaret Irvine was murdered. She was found by her carer at 4.50pm she had been gagged and had her hands tied behind her back with a belt. The cause of death was asphyxia due to her choking on the duster that had been placed in her mouth. Mrs Irvine was last seen alive at 7.00am by the carer who came in to make her breakfast. She instructed the carer to leave the door unlocked to enable others to gain entry.
Mrs Irvine was described as been mentally alert although she was housebound.
On October 31st 2003 Brendan Dixon and Patrick Docherty were both charged with the murder of Margaret Irvine. Colin Miller was charged almost a year later.
The original suspect however was Colin Miller, who met Brendan Dixon in Kilmarnock HMP.(Colin Miller was in for a week for non-payment of fines and Brendan Dixon was in for smashing his ex-girlfriends windows.) " which was dropped during trial as it fitted in with Brendan's alibi," Colin Miller was attacked by cons whilst in prison for his part of the murder, Brendan tries to reassure him by telling him the police were also putting him and Patrick Docherty forward as suspects and many other known criminals. As soon as he got released from prison Colin Miller went to the police and made a third statement, only this time he says he says he saw Brendan Dixon and Patrick Docherty, In Catherine Drive. He changes this to a fourth statement to seeing them outside Mrs Irvine's house. Colin Miller then becomes chief witness ,that is until almost a year later when the PF realises that Colin Miller couldn't have seen anyone from where he states, and eventually after ten months is charged with Mrs Irvine's murder; Colin Miller was the only witness that claimed to have seen Brendan and Patrick near the scene on the morning of the murder. It was proven in court that Colin Miller could not have seen Brendan or Patrick from the location that he claimed to have been at. Colin Miller was the only person spotted near the scene that morning.
Mrs Paton a neighbour of Mrs Irvine, stated in court that she was up early that Sunday morning 28th September 2003. She looked out her window and seen Colin Miller three times, at 6.00am, 6.40am and again at 7.00am. However witnesses for Colin Miller stated in court that he spent the Saturday night at their house. They stated he did not leave their house until 7.50am on the morning of the murder. Later that morning Colin Miller was at another friends house. After receiving a text message, around 10 am Colin Miller went outside to make a phone call. Shortly after he returned to the house,He was in a rage and hit his friend on the face and head with a hammer. Another neighbour of Mrs Irvine was Mrs Mc Cartney, in court she stated, at around 10 am she heard a male voice shouting are you there? she looked out her window and seen a male from the back standing in the kitchen of the murder scene.
She also stated that she noticed a male stranger passing by her house early on the morning of the murder. Both Brendan and Patrick had separate alibis to state that they were no where near the Galston vicinity on the morning Sunday 28th September 2003 when Mrs Irvine was murdered
If capital punishment was still carried out in Britain today, Two innocent men would not be alive to reveal the corruption and underhand dealings in a judicial system in Scotland.
No justice has been done for Mrs Irvine and her family. Galston is a small community; and the murderers of Margaret Irvine must be known to someone in the East Ayrshire area.