Raymond Gilmour

Raymond Gilmour
Date Referred to Court:
13 July 2001
Offence:
Murder
Date of Conviction:
7 June 1982
Appeal Outcome:
Successful
Date of Appeal Outcome:
30 August 2007
Judgment:
http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/opinions/2007hcjac48.html

Police threats led to flawed confession to 1981 killing
· Mother's long battle for justice vindicated[b]

* Severin Carrell, Scotland correspondent
* The Guardian,
* Friday August 31 2007


A man jailed for raping and murdering a girl 26 years ago has had his conviction quashed after appeal judges ruled that his confessions were flawed and based on police intimidation.

Raymond Gilmour, now 45, was sentenced to life in 1982 for attacking Pamela Hastie, 16, in woods near their homes in Johnstone near Paisley.

Strathclyde police made Gilmour, then a highly suggestible 19-year-old with few friends, their suspect because he admitted indecently exposing himself to young women and using pornographic magazines in the woods.

Later investigations revealed that after the murder witnesses saw a hooded man running from the woods who was never sought by police.

Yesterday, after a lengthy campaign to overturn the conviction, led by his mother, Ena Gilmour, 76, church minister Hamish MacColl and lawyer Gordon Ritchie, appeal judges in Edinburgh decided he had been the victim of a miscarriage of justice.

Mrs Gilmour said: "It's been a long, long wait but we've got what we asked for. It's been very, very tough for all these years, but I've always believed he was innocent. I've never had any doubts."

In the judgment the lord justice clerk, Lord Gill, who is Scotland's second most senior judge, criticised non-disclosure of evidence of police violence against Gilmour and accused police pathologists of concealing evidence that Hastie had defensive knife wounds to her hands.

The detective originally in charge of the case, Superintendent James Brown, who never believed Gilmour was guilty, told the procurator fiscal in 1982 that he suspected two officers had used violence to compel Gilmour to confess. The appeal court ruled that had this been revealed at Gilmour's trial, it "would have been a significant matter for the jury's consideration".

An expert on confession evidence, Professor Gisli Gudjonsson, had raised substantial doubts about the reliability of Gilmour's confessions, Lord Gill ruled. His analysis established that Gilmour had given statements riddled with factual errors and inconsistencies about the murder.

Ten main flaws included his claims he strangled her with her "belt or tie", when the twine used had been tightly wound three times around her neck; that he had left her body in view of a path, when it was dragged for 70 yards and concealed; and that she had worn white socks and black shoes, yet had tights and grey shoes.

Lord Gill said two police pathologists, Dr Walter Weir and Dr WDS MacLay, failed to tell the trial that Hastie had cuts on her fingers when Gilmour never mentioned or was accused of using a knife. "It is important evidence of the inadequacies of the postmortem report and, by clearest implication, the lack of professionalism of Dr Weir and Dr McLay," he said.

Lord Gill said weaknesses in the prosecution case included the lack of any eyewitnesses, bodily fluids, textiles, soil and scratch marks on Gilmour's body which linked him to the murder.

Released in 2002 after serving 21 years, Gilmour is now serving 30 months for indecent exposure. His mother and lawyer, Gordon Ritchie, claim his sexual inadequacy was never treated because he would not admit to killing Hastie. Mr Ritchie said Gilmour could now receive compensation.

By Jonathan Brown
Friday, 31 August 2007

A man who was jailed in 1982 for the rape and murder of a schoolgirl has had his conviction overturned after new evidence emerged that he had made a false confession under pressure from the police.

Raymond Gilmour, 45, who was described as a vulnerable individual who could not cope with being stressed, maintained his innocence throughout his 20 years in jail for strangling 16-year-old Pamela Hastie.

Three judges granted his appeal yesterday at the Court of Appeal in Edinburgh, declaring the original majority verdict unsafe after hearing "important and significant" evidence in the case. It also emerged that during the investigation into the murder, evidence was given to the police that could link the child killer Robert Black to the crime.

A van driver alleged that Black ran out of the woods and collided with his vehicle on the day that Miss Hastie's body was found. Black was given a life sentence in 1994 after being found guilty of the killings of 11-year-old Borders schoolgirl Susan Maxwell in 1982, five-year-old Caroline Hogg from Portobello a year later and Sarah Harper, 10, from Leeds in 1986.

Speaking outside the court, Gilmour's mother Christina said that the family's long wait for justice was now over. Mrs Gilmour, 76, said: "It's been a long, long wait but we've got what we asked for. It's been very, very tough for all these years, but I've always believed he was innocent. I've never had any doubts."

Gilmour, who is currently serving another sentence for indecent exposure, confessed twice to the original charge but later claimed he was forced into making the admissions. Miss Hastie was killed in November 1981 in Rannoch Woods near to her home in Johnstone, Renfrewshire, where her partly clothed body was later found.

At a court hearing last year, an expert in interrogation and confessions said Gilmour was emotionally disturbed at the time.

Professor Gisli Gudjonsson, a professor in forensic psychology, said: "He was a vulnerable individual. If subjected to pressure he would not have coped well with that pressure."

There was also fresh evidence regarding the significance of cuts found on Miss Hastie's fingers, no mention of which was made in the Crown pathologist's report, which came from two other experts in forensic medicine.

One of the judges, Lord Gill, said he had noted discrepancies between Gilmour's confession and the state of the corpse.

Appeal victory for murder accused
A man found guilty of the murder of a schoolgirl 25 years ago has had his conviction overturned after telling judges he made a false confession.

Raymond Gilmour, 45, had always protested his innocence of the rape and murder of schoolgirl Pamela Hastie.

His mother, Christina, 76, was at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh to see Lord Justice Clerk Lord Gill announce the judges' decision.

Gilmour, from Paisley, was released from prison in 2002 pending the appeal.

He was returned to the cells, however, as he is still serving a 30-month sentence for indecent exposure - an offence committed after he was released from his life sentence on parole.

Mrs Gilmour said: "It has been a long wait but we got what we asked for. It has been very tough all these years but I have never had any doubt he was innocent."

Sexually disturbed

Pamela, 16, was attacked on the afternoon of 4 November, 1981, as she walked home through Rannoch Woods in Johnstone, Renfrewshire.

Her attacker strangled her with a length of twine after striking her on the head with a piece of wood and dragging her into bushes.

A post-mortem examination also showed she had been raped.

Gilmour, who was said to be a shy, inadequate and sexually disturbed teenager, quickly became a suspect.

He was known to go to the woods to expose himself and when interviewed by detectives, he admitted flashing in the woods the day before the murder.

Pornographic magazines were found at the scene of the crime which matched others found in Gilmour's bedroom.

I didn't kill the girl. I only made it up to please the other police
Raymond Gilmour

He was remanded in custody on a charge of indecent exposure and questioned again about the murder.

On the way back to his cell he began to cry and told police: "I can't go on like this. I'll have to talk."

He told officers the schoolgirl had surprised him and he attacked her.

Gilmour then said: "That girl had a long life to live if I hadn't ended it. I'm sorry about it."

Later he told another officer: "I didn't kill the girl. I only made it up to please the other police. I couldn't take any more questioning."

A senior police officer, Det Supt James Brown, thought the confession was a lie and Gilmour was released.

However, he remained a prime suspect and in January 1982 a new detective superintendent, Charles Craig, took over the case.

Gilmour made a fresh confession to him in February 1982, again admitting he had strangled Pamela.

A jury that year found him guilty by a majority of eight to six. He was jailed for life and later lost an appeal against conviction.

The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission took up Gilmour's protests of innocence and sent him back to the appeal court, noting inconsistencies in the confessions.

Gilmour's defence solicitor, Gordon Ritchie, called in the help of top clinical psychologist Professor Gisli Gudjonsson.

The professor told an earlier hearing that although there was no evidence Gilmour suffered from mental illness he was shy, immature and unlikely to cope well if pressurised by police.

Gilmour's defence team argued that this was "fresh evidence" which should free him.

They also said the defence at his trial should have made a better job of challenging post-mortem evidence and claimed the judge had misled the jury.

Lord Gill, sitting with Lord Abernethy and Lady Paton, ruled that the conviction should be quashed because of the professor's evidence.

Gilmour had served 21 years before he was released on parole.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/6970372.stm

Published: 2007/08/30 12:58:56 GMT