Ex-soldier who killed tot then had ‘intimate relations’ with mum is jailed
MONSTER GETS SEVEN-AND-A-HALF YEARS
BY VIC RODRICK A MONSTER who killed a baby then had “intimate relations” with her mother was yesterday jailed for seven-and-a-half years. Former soldier Gordon McKay repeatedly shook the tot until her brain bled. As five-month-old Hayley lay dying in hospital, McKay was caught in a clinch nearby with the baby’s mum Catherine Davidson. At the High Court in Edinburgh, Lord Uist told McKay: “Hayley’s death has caused profound grief to the members of her family. The taking of a baby’s life by an assault involving repeated shaking is an extremely grave crime which must attract a lengthy sentence of imprisonment. “I am obliged to regard as an aggravation the fact that the victim was an innocent, defenceless child.”
At an earlier hearing, McKay, 38, admitted culpable homicide but claimed he didn’t mean to kill Hayley.
The judge told him yesterday: “You failed to give a true account of what happened to Hayley’s mother, doctors and the police. You persisted in your untrue account to the social worker who prepared a report for this court and even denied any intent to harm Hayley.”
McKay attacked Hayley in his home in Buckhaven, Fife, in February 2016. She died of brain injuries five days later.
Last month, the High Court in Livingston heard how Hayley’s mum, also of Buckhaven, seemed more bothered about McKay than her dying daughter. A report from police said: “At the time of Hayley’s death, Mrs Davidson held her daughter in her arms. After a few minutes, she indicated she needed to be with Mr McKay.”
Chief Inspector Scott Cunningham said last night: “McKay’s incomprehensible, mindless and despicable actions resulted in the death of an innocent baby girl.”