The victim of a Cumbernauld gangland shooting, which injured an innocent bystander and killed her dog, has admitted to attacking his former girlfriend during a drunken Hogmanay row.
Marc McDermott survived being shot in the back and backside after being confronted by three masked men near a relative's home in Cumbernauld, Lanarkshire, in January 2020.
An innocent 52-year-old dog walker suffered a hand injury and her pet Maltichon dog, Henry, was killed by a stray bullet, the Daily Record reports.
READ MORE: Body of Glasgow mum discovered as police launch probe into 'unexplained' death
A court heard that cowardly McDermott subjected his then partner, Cheryl Fraser, to domestic abuse around the time of the shooting. She told a jury that "traumatic" events had left them "stressed" and people were "fearing for their lives".
McDermott, 30, was on trial accused of breaking mum of four Fraser's ankle, smashing her cheekbone and striking her on the head with a knife handle. But, after she claimed to be suffering "severe memory loss", the Crown accepted McDermott's guilty plea to one assault involving striking her on the head with his hand.
Sources at the time of the shooting said it was thought to be linked to an underworld feud. McDermott was accused at Airdrie Sheriff Court this week of assaults on Fraser at her home in Cumbernauld between New Year's Eve 2019 and May 2020.
Fraser, 33, was read a statement she gave to police in which she said she was "covered in blood" from a head wound after McDermott hit her on Hogmanay. The statement added that she suffered a broken ankle some months later when he kicked her with "full force".
Fraser, a student nurse, was treated in hospital but told staff she sustained the ankle injury falling downstairs. In her police statement she also claimed that McDermott elbowed her on the face, fracturing her cheekbone.
Asked in court about the statement, Fraser said: "Both of us were drinking a lot because of the stress in Marc's life. There were death threats, shootings and stabbings. People feared for their lives. I have blocked out years of my life and I have been to therapy because of this. I have severe memory loss."
She said she couldn't remember telling the police about alleged attacks by her former partner. Fraser agreed with Peter Malone, defending, that her relationship with McDermott had been "toxic", adding: "It was horrible."
After McDermott's guilty plea to the reduced charge, Sheriff Joseph Hughes deferred sentence until next month for background reports. McDermott has a criminal record that his solicitor conceded is "bad".
He and another man were jailed in 2012 for an attempted murder that left the 19-year-old male victim brain-damaged. In 2021 he was given a community work order for carrying an axe months after the attempt on his life.
Domestic abuse victim Cheryl Fraser left court in tears after the sheriff gave her a dressing down for chewing gum in the witness box. The mum of four was facing a contempt of court rap after failing to attend court.
After giving evidence from behind a screen during the trial, she appeared in the dock. During her evidence, Sheriff Joseph Hughes had told her to remove gum from her mouth.
He also warned her about the dangers of perjury after she said she couldn't remember much about a police statement she gave in March 2021. The sheriff described her conduct in the witness box as "appalling". He told Fraser: "You certainly chewed for Scotland, it was a terrible look for anyone giving evidence."
The sheriff said she had come "so close" to a contempt finding, adding: "You must realise that if you phone the police then give and sign a statement there could be consequences if you subsequently say 'I cannae remember'." Fraser wept as she insisted: "I'm being very honest, check my medical records, I'm not lying."
A spokesman for Scottish Women's Aid said: “Survivors tell us all the time that their experiences in Scotland’s courts are as traumatic as the abuse they suffer. The effects of trauma on victims are diverse and often long-lasting, including gaps in memory, anxiety and other issues.
"We welcome national commitments from the court service to ensure that everyone who works in our justice systems is trauma-informed and practise accordingly.”
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