Knife killer convicted for second time

A MAN who knifed to death a father in a pub toilet has been found guilty of murder for the second time.

David Shepherd, 32, was convicted yesterday after a retrial at the High Court in Glasgow.

He attacked James Hawthorn, 47, in the Gantry Bar in the city's Shettleston area in October 2007 and was jailed for a minimum of 15 years in July 2008 after the original trial at the same court.

However, the conviction was quashed after the judge in the case wrongly directed the jury to ignore defence claims of provocation.

Shepherd could now face a longer spell than imposed two years ago due to a recent recommendation by senior judges that knife murderers be locked up for at least 16 years.

Judge Mark Stewart, QC, will decide Shepherd's fate when he returns to the dock next month.

Relatives of Mr Hawthorn wept and hugged each other after yesterday's verdict.

A man shouted "thanks from the family of James Hawthorn" to jurors before they left court.

The original trial heard how the victim was found bleeding and badly injured in the pub toilet. The jury was shown a replica of the toilet cubicle that was again constructed for the retrial.