‘Psychotic’ man cleared of killing dog walker in city park
Family’s despair as judge brands Crown case ‘weak’
THE mental health patient accused of murdering dog-walker Jean Campbell in a park has been cleared of the killing.
The prosecution had claimed Paul Ward battered Mrs Campbell, 53, to death with a heavy metal lead because he was an animal lover and hated the way she allegedly treated her German Shepherd Kai.
Ward, who suffers from a psychotic illness, denied the charge. He was deemed unfit to stand trial at an earlier hearing and is presently detained at the State Hospital, Carstairs, Lanarkshire.
But at the High Court in Glasgow yesterday, to the shock of Mrs Campbell’s family, a judge acquitted the 21-year-old of any
‘I can only proceed on the evidence’
involvement in her death following an examination of facts.
Lord Matthews said ‘a weak Crown case’ did not convince him beyond reasonable doubt that Ward was Mrs Campbell’s assailant. He told the court: ‘There was proof of a possible, albeit tenuous, motive. The accused potentially had the opportunity. There are a number of suspicious circumstances in this case and the accused might have committed the acts referred to in the indictment, but that is not the test.
‘I appreciate that what I have said might not find favour with the family and friends of Mrs Campbell.
‘In this day and age, what I have to say may not be the final word on the matter. No doubt the matter can be revisited if compelling new evidence emerges. However, I can only proceed on the evidence presented to me.’
Mrs Campbell’s widower John, 56, appeared visibly upset and had to be comforted by family members as the judge delivered his determination.
Last night, Mrs Campbell’s sister Edwina O’Farrell voiced her despair at the judge’s finding, saying: ‘It’s horrendous, my head is up in the sky. We are all in shock, we were not expecting this result. We don’t know what will happen next.’
The outcome will also come as a blow to police and the Crown Office, which later indicated that it had no immediate plans to investigate anyone else in connection with the murder.
During the two-week hearing, which took place in the accused’s absence, prosecutors claimed Mr Ward attacked Mrs Campbell in Glasgow’s Cranhill Park on December 13, 2013, with a dog lead.
She was ferociously whipped with the lead in a sustained assault in which she suffered 11 broken ribs, a fractured leg, bruising to her head and neck and a brain injury.
Her body was found at 7.40am the following morning by her husband.
A Crown Office spokesman said: ‘Unresolved homicides are never closed and are continually reviewed by our Cold Case Unit to establish if there is any basis for raising criminal proceedings.’