By By Steph Brawn
A POST-MORTEM on murdered schoolgirl Pamela Hastie was “incorrect in a number of fundamental ways,” it is claimed.
Defence lawyer Gordon Ritchie has told how mistakes made during the medical examination contributed to a miscarriage of justice that saw his client, Raymond Gilmour, spend 21 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit.
The Paisley-based solicitor has spoken out on a new documentary which highlights the way police handled the investigation – and the errors that were made during Gilmour’s murder trial.
Pamela, 16, was killed on the afternoon of November 4, 1981, as she walked home through Rannoch Woods, in Johnstone.
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.
The post-mortem also showed she had been raped.
Gilmour was caged for the killing in 1982 but always maintained his innocence, saying he had been forced to confess by police.
He was released on appeal in 2007 after it emerged he was a mentally vulnerable person who cracked under pressure from officers – leaving the murder unsolved.
Gilmour was returned to the cells after his successful appeal to complete a 30-month sentence for indecent exposure that took place while he was on parole.
Mr Ritchie worked on the appeal and was pivotal in exposing the miscarriage of justice.
Speaking on the Anatomy of an Investigation programme broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland he said: “There was no forensic evidence. We were able to demonstrate the post-mortem was incorrect in a number of fundamental ways.
“The pathologist indicated there was signs of petechial haemorrhaging which was consistent with being struck with a blunt instrument. Petechial haemorrhaging is, in fact, consistent with strangulation.
“So when the police get the confession from Raymond, they secure a confession which fits the script they had been given.”
Forensic scientist Angela Gallop, who investigated the case, also speaks on the programme about the lack of evidence linking Gilmour to the crime.
She said: “There was no blood on Gilmour, there was no textile fibre transfer. The only soil there was was on his shoes, which is where you would expect to find it, and there was nothing to suggest any twine on his clothing.
“This evidence did not sit comfortably with the notion of Gilmour’s guilt.”
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel