A city council’s senior architect, Colin Doig, found himself in a terrifying situation after consuming most of three bottles of wine and chasing a 14-year-old boy with a meat cleaver. The teenager feared for his life during this ordeal. Doig also injured his wife, causing severe damage to her ankle that required emergency surgery and the insertion of eight pins and a metal plate.
Despite these violent actions, Sheriff Tim Niven-Smith decided to spare Doig from a prison sentence due to being a first-time offender who pled guilty early and was in stable employment. Instead, the sheriff imposed 225 hours of unpaid work on Doig. This decision was made to avoid putting additional stress on the victims by having them go through a court trial.
The incident took place in Dundee, where Doig pursued the child and harmed his wife. The teenage victim, who cannot be named, reported the terrifying events to the police, expressing his fear during the attack. The situation escalated when Doig picked up a meat cleaver and started chasing the boy around the kitchen, prompting the teenager to lock himself in the bathroom out of fear.
Doig’s wife, who was trying to intervene, was pushed and fell, resulting in a significant ankle injury that required surgical intervention. The court heard that Doig was under the influence of alcohol during the incident and later claimed self-defense when confronted by the authorities.
Despite causing harm to his wife and terrorizing the teenager, Doig’s wife made a full recovery by March 2024 after undergoing surgery and taking time off work. Doig pleaded guilty to his aggressive actions, which included pursuing the child with a meat cleaver, damaging property, and causing harm to his wife.
It was mentioned that Doig and his wife had reconciled, and he would be returning to their home. The court decided that Doig would continue working in Aberdeen and carry out unpaid work during weekends as part of his sentence.
The sheriff emphasized that alcohol consumption could never justify such violent behavior and that minimizing the amount of alcohol consumed would not mitigate the seriousness of the offense. This case highlights the importance of taking responsibility for one’s actions, regardless of personal circumstances, and the legal consequences that follow such violent incidents.
