MURDERED BY SOFT JUSTICE
A talented young father of three stabbed to death in an unprovoked attack. His killer? A thug with 16 convictions freed early from prison – who simply ignored farcical ‘home detention’ for SIX months
A FATHER OF THREE was stabbed to death in the street by a serial knife thug breaching a ‘soft touch’ home curfew sentence.
James Wright was ‘unlawfully at large’ for almost six months
because he had not been arrested and sent back to jail despite ignoring a tagging order.
He murdered 31-year-old Craig McClelland at random, leaving his young children ‘in pain, sobbing, crying’, his heartbroken partner said.
An experienced paramedic almost broke down in court as she relived her efforts to save the university student, who was begging her not to allow him to die.
Sentencing Wright to a minimum of 20 years in prison yesterday, Lord Matthews said that ‘questions will be asked’ about why the killer was not recaptured after he had breached his home detention order.
Last night, critics branded the case ‘appalling’ and warned the SNP is ‘letting dangerous offenders off the hook’. Mr McClelland’s distraught partner Stacey, the mother of his children, also criticised the criminal justice system after Wright was sentenced.
She wrote on social media: ‘The justice system completely failed to protect an innocent man. The law must change.’
Wright, 25, who had 16 previous
convictions, including two for knife crimes, had been released early from Low Moss Prison in Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire, on a Home Detention Curfew (HDC). This allows criminals to serve part of their sentence in the community wearing a tag.
The details of the case emerged yesterday when Wright was sentenced to life for murdering Mr McClelland in Paisley last year.
In a heart-wrenching impact statement, Miss McClelland, the mother of his boys – aged six, three and one – said: ‘I have to watch our three sons in pain, sobbing, crying, asking questions I cannot answer; my three-year-old on his birthday built his daddy out of Lego; the despair in my sixyear-old’s eyes when I couldn’t build a Lego set for him, not in the same way daddy did; the devastating sound of my baby searching for his daddy in the night – constantly shouting on him – the way he flaps his arms in excitement whenever he sees a picture of his daddy, it completely breaks my heart.’
Wright had been jailed for carrying a sharp implement in public on October 21, 2016, and released early on February 13 last year.
Home Detention Orders are made at the discretion of prison governors and have been labelled ‘armchair custody’ that puts public safety at risk.
Wright’s licence was revoked 11 days later after he breached the conditions of the curfew by trying to tamper with his tag.
G4S, which has the tagging contract, alerted Police Scotland, which says it made ‘efforts’ to trace him.
But Wright remained at large until he stabbed Mr McClelland on July 23, after asking him for a light.
The High Court in Glasgow heard there was no explanation for the murder in Tweed Avenue,
‘Enormity of this crime’
I have to watch our three sons in pain, sobbing, crying, asking questions that I cannot answer; my three-year-old on his birthday built his daddy out of Lego; the despair in my sixyear-old’s eyes when I couldn’t build a Lego set for him, not in
the same way daddy did; the devastating sound of my baby searching for his daddy in the night – constantly shouting on him – the way he flaps his arms in excitement whenever he sees a picture of his daddy, it completely breaks my heart.
Excerpt from Stacey McClelland’s victim impact statement
Foxbar, Paisley, other than Wright’s ‘blood lust’.
Sentencing him to life with a minimum of 20 years, Lord Matthews said he had no idea why he had not been recaptured.
Lord Matthews told Wright: ‘I note that you have a number of previous convictions, including two for carrying a sharp implement in public. I note also that your last sentence, for just such an offence, was imposed on October 21, 2016.
‘On February 13, 2017, you were released early from that sentence and placed on a Home Detention Curfew, involving the use of an electronic tag.
‘You breached that curfew and it was revoked 11 days later but you remained unlawfully at large for nearly six months, during which time you committed this awful offence.
‘I have no doubt that questions will be asked about that but I am afraid I have no answers.
‘Whatever sentence you are ordered to serve will be wholly inadequate compared to the grief you have caused.’
During Wright’s trial, the jury heard he stabbed Mr McClelland twice, after stopping him in the street and asking him for a light.
Mr McClelland called for an ambulance himself at 11.20pm and as paramedics tended him, he told them the names of his partner and children and begged them: ‘Don’t let me die.’
At the High Court in Livingston yesterday, Lord Matthews said of the victim: ‘He was sailing through university and had everything to live for. On July 23, 2017, he left his partner and children to visit his brother to play the Xbox.
‘He was never to reach his destination or to return home. He was brutally stabbed in the street for no reason brought out in the evidence other than blood lust.
‘Sometimes in this court the awful realities with which we deal become sanitised when reduced to mere words. In this case, however, the words in one of the victim impact statements which I read may serve to some extent to bring home the enormity of this crime.’
Mr McClelland’s partner, mother, father and brother shared what his loss meant to them.
Lord Matthews added: ‘I don’t know if I will ever forget the sight of a paramedic almost breaking down in court as she relived her efforts to save Mr McClelland.’
Solicitor advocate John Scott, defending, said: ‘He lost his father when he was ten – that seems to have had a significant impact on him, his education and his behaviour.’
Miss McClelland posted a message of thanks on a JustGiving page set up after the murder which raised £5,335 for her and her sons.
She said: ‘If I could speak for Craig he would be overwhelmed with all the kindness of people trying to help his family in the worst imaginable circumstances. He would also be speechless at how much people cared/loved him. From the bottom of my broken heart I thank you all.’
A police spokesman said: ‘Police Scotland was alerted of the status of James Wright having breached the terms of his monitoring conditions. An extensive briefing was provided to all officers working across the divisional area at the start of each shift and efforts were undertaken to trace him.’
Scottish Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘This case is so appalling even the judge seems to have been lost for words.
‘Here’s a clearly dangerous individual, released virtually negligently early from his sentence, and trusted to go about his business.
‘Now a man’s paid for this ineptitude with his life. The SNP’s softtouch drive to empty prisons is letting dangerous offenders off the hook. So long as this continues, more incidents like this will occur.’
A Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘This was a dreadful crime and we note and welcome the sentence imposed.
‘HDC is an established part of the process of preparing people for full release back to the community and operated across the UK.
‘Decisions on whether or not to grant HDC rest with the Scottish Prison Service. A risk assessment is undertaken, which includes a report from local authority criminal justice social workers.
‘If a prisoner released on an HDC licence breaches any of the licence conditions, he or she may be recalled to custody by the SPS.’
Graham Grant and Comment – Page 16