More Legal Madness
After the madness of the Oscar Pistorius trial here's another unbelievable story from the law courts much closer to home in which a young man from Midlothian, Gary Lockhart, denies murder despite admitting responsibility for killing his wife and child.
‘Mad moment’ as man killed wife and child
Garry and Janet Lockhart Rex Features
By Scotland Staff - The Times
A man charged with murdering his wife and two-year-old son told police it was “just one moment of madness”, a court heard yesterday.
On the second day of Garry Lockhart’s trial at the Edinburgh High Court yesterday the jury and members of Janet’s family watched a recording of him being interviewed by police. He told officers: “It was just one moment of madness. I won’t give up trying to kill myself and there’s nothing you can say or do to me that’s going to change that. What I have done is wrong”.
Lockhart, 33, is charged with murdering his 29-year-old wife Janet and their son, Michael, at their home in South Chesters Lane, in Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, on December 28 last year.
Lockhart said that he had drunk about six pints of beer and “numerous shorts” before returning home at about 2am. He admitted being drunk.
Detective Constable Stuart Robertson asked him: “How was Janet?”. “Not happy” he replied and said there was an argument. She worked at the local Tesco store and was due to start there at 4am. Lockhart said she had not wanted him to come back late because she was concerned he would not hear if their son got up.
Janet had started shouting at him, he said. “She tried to go past me or something and I grabbed out. I just snapped. I had my hands on her neck, she was facing me, but then she sunk her teeth into my arm. To counter that I turned her round so she couldn’t bite me. I tightened my grip until that was it.”
Janet, he added had grabbed his groin. “I held her for too long until she fell to the ground.” He said that he could not believe what had happened.
Lockhart said: “I was concerned about Michael growing up with one parent in jail and one parent dead. The only way I could see out of it was if all three of us went.”
When Michael woke up in the morning, Lockhart said: “I talked to him and played with him, just the usual, and then I put the pillow over him.”
The jury heard in a joint minute of agreement that Lockhart had admitted killing them. He denies murder. The trial continues.
