Baby in court as her father's killer is jailed

Published on Monday 5 January 2009 21:05

A BABY girl sat on her mother's knee in court yesterday, as the man who stabbed her father to death was jailed for ten years.

Mark Connor, 27, had been celebrating little Katie's birth when he and James Mackenzie, 23, became involved in an argument. A fight followed during which Mr Connor was fatally stabbed in the chest and abdomen.

Katie, who is seven months old, was taken to the High Court in Edinburgh by her mother, Caroline Foster, and was allowed to remain with her during the hearing. Ms Foster declined to comment after the case, but the victim's brother, Paul Connor, 26, condemned the sentence imposed on Mackenzie, who had been charged initially with murder but pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of culpable homicide.

With parole, Mackenzie could be released after five years.

"I would just like to say ten years is not enough," Mr Connor said. "It was premeditated murder. He stabbed him twice and both wounds were fatal. He knew what he was doing. He got rid of his clothing and got rid of the knife. I just feel with ten years, justice was not served."

The court heard that Mark Connor, of Inverness, worked throughout the country as an overhead linesman, and returned from Bristol in June last year following the birth of his daughter. On 13 June, he went out drinking to celebrate the birth, and ended up at a party in Mackenzie's home, also in Inverness.

"Precisely how and why the fatal blows came to be struck may never be known, as the key witnesses are extremely unreliable either through drink or drugs, or mendacity," said the advocate-depute, Iain McSporran, who added two witnesses had been charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice.

"It is appropriate to record, in the context of why the accused may have reacted as he did, that Mr Connor had a substantial criminal record including 13 convictions for violence. Mackenzie has ten previous convictions, none for violence or for weapons offences."

It had been alleged by witnesses that Mr Connor had handed out Valium tablets on arriving at the party, and that he became loud and sarcastic. At one stage, he phoned and asked a friend to come and collect him because "something is going to kick off". Mr McSporran said it was believed a scuffle had then started.

Mr Connor was "raging" and challenged Mackenzie to a fight outside. In the hall, Mackenzie stabbed him twice, and although Mr Connor managed to leave, he collapsed from heavy bleeding. Both lungs had been punctured, and arteries were cut.

The judge, Lord Hodge, said the sentence would have been 14 years, but Mackenzie was due a discount for pleading guilty.