DAVID NORRIS FROM ELGIN AND INVERNESS SENTENCED TO LIFE FOR BRUTAL MURDER IN INVERNESS

In a case that has shocked the communities of Elgin, Inverness, and the wider Moray region, David Norris, aged 20, was sentenced to life imprisonment following his conviction for the savage murder of John Menzies in Inverness. The incident occurred on June 28, 2005, at Waterloo Place, a well-known public area in the city, where Norris, under the influence of alcohol and drugs, launched a violent assault on his drinking companion.

According to court proceedings, Norris subjected Mr. Menzies to a relentless barrage of punches and kicks directed at his head and body. The attack culminated in Norris stamping on Mr. Menzies' head and repeatedly smashing it against a wall and the ground, leading to fatal injuries. The severity of the assault was such that forensic photographs presented during the trial depicted the gruesome aftermath, which the jury was warned could be distressing.

Following a five-day trial at the High Court in Inverness, Norris was found guilty of murder earlier this month. The presiding judge, Lord Menzies, sentenced him at the High Court in Aberdeen to serve a minimum of 12 years behind bars, with the sentence being backdated to July 1, 2005. The court emphasized that Norris's actions demonstrated a reckless disregard for human life, though it was acknowledged that the killing was not premeditated.

During the trial, Norris recounted that his victim had called him a “beast” and a “paedophile” after discovering Norris’s past sexual offenses. Norris’s criminal history includes a disturbing incident from when he was just 16 years old, involving the sexual assault of an eight-year-old girl he was babysitting. In May 2002, the girl awoke in a house in Elgin to find Norris, then half-naked, beside her. He assaulted her, left the room, then returned to continue his attack. This incident was later addressed in December 2003 at the High Court in Edinburgh, where Lord Abernethy ordered Norris to undergo a sex offenders’ program and counseling for his substance abuse issues.

The mother of Norris’s young victim expressed her outrage at the court’s decision, condemning the sentence but acknowledging that Norris’s subsequent actions confirmed her fears. She stated, “If he was capable of doing what he did to our daughter, he was capable of anything.” She also pointed out that Norris would not have been free to commit the murder of Mr. Menzies if he had received a jail sentence for the earlier sex offense. The mother added, “We are left with the feeling that we still have not had justice for what happened to our daughter. Norris’s attitude seems to have been, ‘If I have got away with what I did to that young girl, I can get away with anything.’”

Defense counsel Jock Thomson, QC, described the case as “extremely sad and tragic,” emphasizing that Norris had been convicted of a sexual offense in Edinburgh and had moved to Inverness to start anew. During this period, his background was not publicly known, and he appeared to be leading a relatively stable life, with employment, housing, and a relationship. However, this period of relative stability was short-lived, as the Crown’s appeal against Norris’s initial lenient sentence for the sex offense resulted in increased scrutiny and publicity.

Regarding the murder, Jock Thomson admitted that Norris’s actions were an “extreme act of violence,” but argued that it was not premeditated. He claimed Norris had expressed genuine remorse and regret for his actions. In sentencing, Lord Menzies acknowledged that Norris’s attack was not premeditated but was a clear example of wicked recklessness, showing a disregard for whether his victim lived or died. The judge considered mitigating factors such as provocation, the absence of a weapon, and Norris’s remorse, but ultimately balanced these against his prior criminal record and the brutal nature of the assault.

In conclusion, Norris was ordered to serve a life sentence with a minimum term of 12 years, reflecting the gravity of his crime and the need for justice for Mr. Menzies and the community of Inverness and Moray.