SENTENCING STATEMENTS

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When deciding a sentence, a judge must deal with the offence that the offender has been convicted of, taking into account the unique circumstances of each particular case. The judge will carefully consider the facts that are presented to the Court by both the prosecution and by the defence.

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Read more about victims of crime and sentencing.

HMA v William McBurnie

Oct 10, 2024

At the High Court in Livingston, Lord Mulholland sentenced William McBurnie to an extended sentence of 13 years after the offender pled guilty to attempting to murder his ex-partner and her mother. The custodial term of the sentence was set at 11 years.

On sentencing, Lord Mulholland said:

“William McBurnie, you drove your car, intoxicated, through the door of a funeral parlour ran by your former partner Zoe Turnbull. You did this against a background of unpleasant, abusive and threatening messages sent by you to her. She was so concerned at your behaviour that she went to the police, and you were on bail at the time you attempted to murder her and her mother. Your conduct was so cowardly, selfish and reckless that it could easily have killed her and her mother who was also present. You are fortunate that you are not in the dock facing a charge of murder.

Being heavily under the influence of alcohol is no excuse, it is an aggravation, as is the background of you not accepting that your relationship with the victim Zoe Turnbull was over and pestering her with unwanted messages. You also parked across from her place of work to frighten and intimidate her.

I also take into account the financial damage you have caused to her in running her business and I also take into account the health problems your criminal conduct has caused to her mother, the victim Beverley Turnbull. She was a fit and healthy woman until this incident. Your criminal conduct has caused her health to deteriorate significantly. Your criminal conduct has had a significant and detrimental effect on both women and you should be ashamed for what you did.

You were a former police officer and you have a criminal conviction for driving whilst intoxicated. You would have been aware therefore that you should not be driving intoxicated. You turned a mode of transport, your vehicle, into a lethal weapon and used it with devastating effect.

I take account of all this in sentencing you, as do I take account of all that has been said on your behalf and the terms of the Criminal Justice Social Work Report. I also take account of the timing of your plea of guilty and the risk you pose to your victims which is in my view significant enough to impose an extended sentence.

I hereby sentence you to an extended sentence of 13 years. The extension part is 2 years, and the custodial part is 11 years’ imprisonment, which is reduced from a headline sentence of 12 years’ imprisonment to take account of the timing of the plea of guilty. I apportion one year of the custodial part of the sentence to the bail and ex-partner aggravations.

I order that the sentence should run from 8 December 2022, the date you were first ordered into custody by the court for this matter.

I also make indefinite non harassment orders in respect of the victims Zoe Turnbull and Beverley Turnbull, prohibiting you from contacting and approaching them by any means, including electronic and mobile phone contact whilst in prison or when at liberty. A breach of the non-harassment orders is a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment.

I also disqualify you in terms of section 248 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 from obtaining or holding a driving licence for 16 and a half years and until you pass the extended test. This period includes the Coroner and Justice Act 2009 uplift."