Football legend’s son facing jail for hit and run that left victim with fractured skull
the son of Rangers legend Ally McCoist is facing jail after a pedestrian suffered a fractured skull when he ran a red light and hit him at ‘excessive speed’.
Argyll McCoist, 20, struck Stephan Murdoch on a pedestrian crossing, leaving him with serious injuries including bleeding on the brain and a broken leg.
Mr Murdoch, 21, spent six months on crutches, had to leave his job and still suffers pain 20 months on from the incident. he now has problems with his memory and eyesight, rarely goes out and panics if he has to cross a road.
Yesterday at Paisley Sheriff Court, McCoist, from houston, Renfrewshire, admitted driving without insurance and causing serious injury to Mr Murdoch by driving dangerously.
he had not guilty pleas accepted to charges of failing to stop at the scene of an accident, failing to report an accident to police and failing to tell a police officer who was driving his car at the time.
McCoist’s father was not in court yesterday, but did accompany him to a hearing last year when he faced a charge of driving without insurance. On that occasion, he was admonished at Paisley’s Justice of the Peace Court.
Yesterday, McCoist sobbed in the dock as procurator fiscal depute Pamela Brady said Mr Murdoch was hit as he crossed a pedestrian crossing in Bishopton, Renfrewshire, on Greenock Road near its junction with Kingston Road, around 9.30pm on December 3, 2016.
She said: ‘Witnesses observed the car driven by the accused approaching the lights and witnesses describe the car as travelling at excessive speed.
‘the car seemed to swerve to the right before striking the complainer. the car then drove away, the accused did not stop at the scene.’
Mrs Brady said McCoist’s car was later identified ‘through debris left at the scene’ and it emerged he had been driving.
She said Mr Murdoch is now working in a call centre as it allows him to sit down but that he has to keep his leg moving regularly so it does not seize up. he still bears emotional scars from the accident, and has memory problems as a result of his head and brain injuries.
Mrs Brady added: ‘he advises he does not go out as much as he used to. he becomes particularly anxious when he has to cross a road.
‘he has also developed problems with sleep and becomes sick and nauseous when he lies down – this results in him becoming agitated.’
the prosecutor said that Mr Murdoch recently completed a 10k race, to ‘prove to himself he could do it’, but that he had to walk most of the way.
McCoist’s defence QC John Scullion said: ‘the accused failed to noticed the light had changed. When he saw him he swerved but he was too late to avoid striking him and he panicked and drove off.
‘he expresses remorse and it appears both genuine and profound.’
Mr Scullion said McCoist was 18 at the time and said his insurance had lapsed the day before he struck Mr Murdoch.
As he called from background reports to be prepared ahead of sentencing, Sheriff Colin Pettigrew warned him McCoist could be jailed, saying: ‘this is a serious matter. All options will be open to me.’
he then banned McCoist from driving and told him to return to the dock next month to be sentenced.
A man who answered the door at Mr Murdoch’s family home in Bishopton last night said: ‘It’s a good result today anyway.
‘he was very lucky. he’s going to the [Rangers] game tonight. he said he basically wanted to shut off and just chill out tonight. I went to the court today and the procurator fiscal did really well.
‘he’s got a 2:1 for his degree at West of Scotland for business so he seems to be doing well. he was back at university with a bit of support in January so he didn’t need to miss a year.
‘he’s done tremendous to get back up and running considering what happened.
‘hopefully this is the end of it for him because it’s two years of physical and emotional stuff. he’s not got a bad bone in his body.’
‘The accused did not stop at the scene’