Man to be observed at hospital after death
AMAN who k i l led a stranger after he pushed her from a pier into water has been sent to hospital for examination. Jacob Foster, 29, shoved Charmaine O’Donnell – later claiming it was a “bit of fun”.
The 25- year- old charity worker plunged to her death at Helensburgh Pier in Argyll and Bute on April 23 last year.
Ms O’Donnell passed away due to severe neck injuries and drowning.
Foster was convicted of a culpable homicide charge following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
The killer, also of Helensburgh and who suffers from a learning disability, had been accused of murder.
His lawyers had lodged a special defence of diminished responsibility.
The sentencing was told that medical practitioners who assessed him agreed that he should be observed for a period of time at The State Hospital in Carstairs, South Lanarkshire.
Judge Lord Fairley granted an interim compulsion order with a review to take place in February.
He said: “This is not a final sentence.
“This allows medical practitioners to assess him in a closed secure environment. It only lasts 12 weeks for the assessment to take place but this can be extended and some orders can be extended.
“This is an essential step I need to take in sentencing him.
“I’m satisfied from the written evidence from the medical practitioners that he has a mental disorder.
“It may be a source of frustration but I have to do what’s right in regard to Mr Foster’s medical condition.”
Ms O’Donnell, of Glasgow, had gone on a day out to Helensburgh with her friend Caitlin McTaggart.
They got chatting to men fishing at the pier as Foster, above, lurked nearby. A group of youngsters had also been jumping into the water to swim.
Ms McTaggart recalled suddenly hearing a “commotion”.
She said “somebody” had gone over the railings at the pier.
She then peered over and to her horror found Ms O’Donnell in the sea.
A number of the youngsters there immediately tried to help.
Prosecutor Alex Prentice QC asked Ms McTaggart: “Did you say anything to Jacob?”
Ms McTaggart said: “I was screaming at him to help her. He just kept saying ‘ what have I done? I have taken it too far this time. I am going away for a long time’.”
Paramedics and police raced to the scene, but Ms O’Donnell did not survive.
Stephen Cairns, 42, was one of the men fishing that day. He remembered Foster shoving Ms O’Donnell over the edge.
PC Gary Davidson spoke to Foster at the pier after the incident.
The officer told jurors: “He said that it was an accident. He said ‘ I just pushed her. It was just a bit of fun’. He said that he had a few cans that day.
“I said to him the best thing was to stay calm and not say anything, but he said these things again and again.”
Foster added: “I did not know that she could not swim.”
Foster’s lawyers had claimed, due to his mental health issues, he had misunderstood an alleged remark Ms O’Donnell made about going into the water.
But, in his closing speech, Mr Prentice said there was “overwhelming” evidence Foster pushed Ms O’Donnell, insisting it was “deliberate conduct”.
It emerged after the verdict Foster had a number of previous convictions including assaulting a staff member at a Costa Coffee shop in Helensburgh in 2018.
Mr Prentice told the court Ms O’Donnell had been on furlough at the time from her job as an assistant manager at a British Heart Foundation shop.
She was due to return a week after she died.
The advocate depute added: “It is clear she was much loved and her death has brought untold and continuing grief.
“She was described as a loving and selfless person.”
Sean Templeton, defending, yesterday told a hearing that an interim compulsion order was “necessary”.
He added: “This is so doctors can observe him 24/ 7 and can make a full assessment.
“All doctors say such a measure is required and is in the best interests of the case.
“It’s not lost on the court that this remains one of the most tragic cases seen with what took place.”