Part   Six   "Cold Case"

 
Tuesday 15th November 2016
 

Last night's dinner, and post-dinner talking, had helped clear the air. Joan was happier and even Angela had been smiling; although that was possibly because she'd finished another module of her course, with a Merit.

Tammy only had one class today and that involved watching a fly-on-the-wall documentary about one of Police Scotland's murder investigations. It had been made quite a few years earlier and Tammy recognised one or two of the youthful looking officers.

"Tomorrow, one of the officers involved in that investigation will be here to take questions. You should have enough information to find the many newspaper articles about the trial."

A few of the students hadn't been taking notes and now scrambled to remember what information had been given about the crime. Tammy's notes were concise, she had enough to go with:

Victim: Paula Dougall 22 years old
DoD: 14 February 2006
Found: St George's Park, East Thurso
Suspect: George Smith, 28 years old

Tammy knew the surname and wondered if Paula had been related to James Dougall, whom she'd encountered several times in the previous two years. He was, she believed, still in prison.

Before she went home she decided to drop in to see Sarah, only finding a mother and a pram in the shop.

"If I'd have known, Emily, that you were here I'd have bought you flowers."

"Don't worry, Tammy, this was a last minute decision and I didn't even let mum know until we were parking up."

"How are you?"

"I'm fine, well, as fine as you can be after giving birth!"

"I guess you didn't have a Caesarean?"

"No, but the duty doc was considering it as I was overdue, thankfully my contractions started - that's something you cannot experience during ante-natal classes!"

"And how's Kim?"

Emily folded back the yellow blanket that was covering the tiny babe. Kim was wearing a white knitted hat and was in a white padded suit.

"She's asleep, so I won't pick her up."

"Her?"

"Yes, I've decided to raise Kim as a girl. The doctors can't be certain right now whether she'll be fertile but there's a few years before any final decision has to be made. Surgery is not an option right now."

Tammy hugged Emily, "so you'll be changing all the colours to pink?"

"Hell, no! Kim is a person and not a label or a brand. Plus, I've deliberately bought, or been given, gender neutral colours."

"What about her father?"

"He's history, he couldn't cope with the XXY diagnosis or the physical underdevelopment aspects in Kim's case."

"Is there any likelihood that she'd develop as a male?"

"Probably not in the normal sense, but I really don't want to take any irreversible decisions until Kim and I can talk about it."

"That's a few years away, then?"

"Probably!"

"So treating Kim as a girl was one of two options?"

"There was a third option, but it would have meant answering busybody questions all ruddy day long. Kim, and I, don't need that."

"What's the immediate prognosis?"

"I'm waiting for an appointment with a senior paediatric consultant who is familiar with these cases, but she's otherwise healthy."

Sarah returning, carrying a packet of nappies. "Here you are, Emily, hi Tammy."

"Did you forget nappies?"

"I thought I had four or five with me but there were only two in the change bag so mum offered to get some from the chemists."

Kim chose that moment to wake, flexing her lungs. Emily picked her up. "Oh, looks like Kim needs changing, can you help, Tammy?"

"Sure, how about the table in the storeroom?"

"Fine, there's a changing mat in the bag." Emily pointed under the pram, "bring the whole bag."

----

Tammy eventually left Sarah's shop after lunch, having agreed to look after it on Friday so Sarah could join Emily at a post-natal appointment.

The house was quiet and Tammy assumed no-one was in. She sat down with her office laptop and expected to find a reply from Jenny, following her contact report of the previous day, but there was nothing. The report tracker did say that Jenny had seen it, but that was all. Her emails were of the read-and-forget variety, although the security alert status had increased to amber for all London-based staff and satellite offices.

Did that apply to Tammy, on her sabbatical miles away from trouble? She decided that a little extra vigilance wouldn't go amiss.

"That you, Tammy?"

She jumped as her bedroom door opened. "Oh, I didn't know you were in."

"I was working on a report, what are you doing?"

"Checking on a few things, now I need to do some research for my course."

"So this wasn't course-related?"

"No, Angela."

"Which is more important?"

"They're both important. This took fifteen minutes and I probably won't need to touch it again this week. I'll now spend an hour, or longer, focussed on preparing for a session tomorrow. I only have a little information and I needed to be able to deal with it knowing that nothing else was outstanding."

"So, your secret stuff is still going on?"

"Angela, I don't really want to have this conversation."

"Because it makes you uncomfortable?"

"No, I mean yes. I can't answer your questions but right now I'm not achieving anything else either. I want to get my coursework done before dinner, if possible?"

Angela took the hint and left, but Tammy had lost her concentration. She put the official laptop away and locked the box, before booting her personal one. Next on her list, however, was to fetch a mug of calming tea from the kitchen.

She returned to her room, spotting a flashing light on her official mobile. She checked for messages.

From Security: Please note that the alert status is Amber. This affects all personnel regardless of location.

Tammy knew that the main UK threat level was Severe at the present time, but the Amber status suggested that there was a threat against the Security Service, albeit a threat with no name or agenda.

A check of the news websites revealed there had been a slew of successes against terrorists over the past few days, as well as a report that children were calling a child-friendly helpline to report suspected terrorist activity. None of these suggested an increased risk to the general public so Tammy really didn't know how to play it.

Her tea had now called so she tipped it away.

Her phone pinged again:

From Security: All staff working outside of the London estate should be extra vigilant.

Well, thought Tammy, that didn't help.

She decided that distraction was the best option and she researched the unfortunate case of Paula Dougall, who had died ten years earlier on a park near the Mill Theatre. She'd been found in evening of 14th Feb 2006, several hours after she'd finished work at the local primary school, and died in the ambulance from head injuries. She was identified by her brother, James Dougall.

George Smith had been arrested the following morning and was recorded as being her boyfriend. Some of her blood had been found on a shirt that he'd worn the previous day and this evidence had been key to his conviction, although the murder weapon had never been found.

In 2011 George Smith launched an appeal and the verdict was overturned. This hadn't been included in the TV programme, she noted. The grounds of the appeal were that Paula had visited George after work and had eaten a meal together at his home but Paula had cut her finger on a knife and he had cleaned the wound, and she'd otherwise left his around nine that evening.

This time was confirmed by a neighbour of George, who hadn't been interviewed during the original trial. George was released in December 2011 just in time for Christmas. He was subjected to a hate campaign and was found dead at home on 2nd January 2012 after neighbours became concerned.

No-one else had been arrested for the attack on Paula Dougall and the death of George Smith had been given to natural causes.

Tammy looked at her notes, it did seem that the conviction had been made with minimal evidence, and perhaps this was seen at the time as an open and shut case?

She printed off her notes ready for the morning.

 
Wednesday 16th November 2016
 

Outside the weather had turned decidedly wintry although there wasn't any snow on the ground, yet. The wind had woken Tammy at six and she couldn't get back off to sleep so surrendered. Her official mobile was flashing.

From Jenny: The security messages do apply to you. OK re report, keep me informed.

What did that mean?

Tammy opened up her secure box and removed her official laptop before climbing back into bed. She knew this would be logged, but reckoned she had enough reasons as she searched James Dougall in the UK national police database.

He was back in prison but up for parole after an assault, although he hadn't been convicted of the assault on Michael McPherson a year earlier, and hadn't even been arrested for that assault. His record included thefts and assaults; he wasn't not the kind of man you'd want to meet in a darkened street.

She put that away securely but slipped her baby Glock out of the box and into her bag before hitting the shower.

She was downstairs by seven for breakfast and was surprised to find her father already in the kitchen.

"There's a risk of snow and ice so I'm heading into school to help where I can."

"Ok Dad, I've just got one seminar this morning so I should be back at lunchtime."

"Be careful and make sure your snow chains are in the car,"

"Along with my shovel, flashlight, blankets and emergency water?"

"Yes, all of that."

"Don't worry."

She used her tablet at the breakfast table, checking the day's news stories, but it seemed as if the world was largely peaceful, quite a ridiculous thought.

The snow started to fall as she pulled out of the driveway, traffic was heeding the conditions and the ride into town took a few minutes longer than usual but by nine she was parked in the University campus. Tammy had learned that anyone arriving at 9.15 had little chance of a parking space, whereas 08.55 was usually no trouble. She found a spot close to the K block she'd been in the previous day.

First, however, she needed a coffee so went to the concession in the main building.

"Oh, hello Iain?"

"Hi Tammy."

"What are you doing today?"

"Giving a talk on a cold case."

"Paula Dougall?"

"Yes."

"That's my class you'll be with, I'm trying to keep a low profile so no professional references please, Iain."

"I thought you were just a student?"

"And your replacement as director!"

"Indeed, how's that coming along?"

"The Press night is in two weeks."

"Oh, how are they shaping up?"

"Mostly they're okay but I have my concerns about one of the B cast."

"Which one?"

"Lucy."

"Ah, she loses concentration?"

"Yes."

"She'll be okay on the night, I auditioned her."

"And then left it all to me!"

They walked away with their coffees and Tammy spotted Lucas hovering.

"I'll catch you later, Chief Inspector."

"Certainly, Miss Smart."

Tammy waited for the inevitable comment, it didn't take long once Iain was out of earshot.

"Looks like you were very chummy with that filth?"

"I've known him personally for a few years, I also object to that term."

"So you are a pig-lover?"

"What's your beef with the constabulary?"

"They confiscated my weed in the summer, second time this year."

"Then why are you doing this course?"

"So I can work out how to beat the system. As I said, you were a bit chummy."

"If you must know, I replaced Iain as director at the Mill Theatre. He put me on the stage when I was still at school and cast me as second lead in West Side Story. I've taken over from him and I have a play starting in two weeks."

"Yeah, I googled you. Were you attacked on the stage?"

"No, that was another girl. Look, I didn't even know Iain was a police officer at first."

Lucas seemed to accept Tammy's explanation and was silent for the rest of the walk to K10, the room adjacent to Monday's film. Iain had already reached the room and was stood with Donald Templeton.

Tammy settled herself down, towards the rear of the room. This was one of the rooms equipped for cross-campus working, the other Criminology classes at the other campuses would be joining in via video. On the screen behind Iain and Donald was a combined image from two other sites, she could just make out monitors fitted to the lectern.

By 09.25 everyone was seated so Donald introduced himself.

"Good morning from Thurso, we welcome students in Stornaway and Wick. I'm Donald Templeton and I'm a lecturer in Criminology here at Thurso. Over the past few days you've each been able to watch the Documentary filmed in 2006 concerning the murder of Paula Dougall. With us today is Chief Inspector Davison of Police Scotland who, as Detective Inspector Davison, was in charge of the murder investigation."

That much Tammy had known from the video.

"I'll ask the Chief Inspector to go through the case, we'll break for fifteen minutes and then we'll take questions. Please don't interrupt as this is a complex case!"

Donald stepped aside and Iain took over.

"Good morning everyone. I was ten years younger when that programme was made and a very new Inspector. For those who have done your research, it wasn't the highlight of my career either."

Iain spoke with authority and admitted that mistakes had been made. Tammy could sense that Lucas wanted to shout out but was now biding his time.

It was gone ten fifteen when Iain started to talk about the appeal, although he hadn't handled the investigation into the original conviction.

"A team from Stirling came here to examine the case and interviewed witnesses we hadn't found. Let's put this into perspective, the prosecution evidence ran to over two hundred pages of A4, with many witnesses giving contrasting views, none of the witnesses was credible. George Smith had been convicted of an assault using a knife when he was seventeen and we built the case around that, for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service."

Donald called for a break and almost everyone started heading for the café, the loo or both. Tammy checked her mobiles and saw a message on her official phone,.

From Jenny: For info, James Dougall was paroled last night.

She made her way to the front, keeping her bag with her.

"Iain, can I have a word?"

"Sure, Tammy."

They walked out into the carpark, straight into James Dougall.

"Oh, look, two of my favourite people."