Daughter told dad was hit across face with dog lead prior to death
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The final moments for an Inverness businessman who collapsed and died from a heart attack after an alleged dog lead assault by his neighbour were recalled by the 55-year-old's daughter.
Georgia Birrell's evidence was shown to a jury at the High Court in Inverness after it had been recorded previously in court-like conditions.
The evidence – known legally as by commission – is designed to be in a less formal setting for a person regarded as a child.
When her garage proprietor father, John, died on August 17, 2020, Georgia, now 20, was 17.
Before the second day of the trial, the jury was reduced to 14 after one member was discharged due to a family bereavement.
Georgia said she had returned from school to the family home in the Blackpark area of Inverness.
She was in her bedroom when her mother, 57-year-old Yvonne, shouted to her that "dad has been hit".
Hamish Towler, a 66-year-old retired eye surgeon, who lives next door, denies the culpable homicide of Mr Birrell, with whom the jury was told there had been a long-running neighbourly dispute.
It is alleged he obstructed the van Mr Birrell was travelling in to block it passing, hit the vehicle with a dog lead before pulling Mr Birrell out.
The charge claims Mr Birrell was pushed across the road, punched then struck on the face with the leash.
Towler is further accused of shouting and swearing at him.
It is stated Mr Birrell suffered a cardiac arrest and died as a result.
Towler also denies a breach of a bail condition preventing him from being on the road between 5pm and 6pm. It is alleged he drove along it a few weeks after being released on bail.
Towler, who is represented by Shelagh McCall KC, has lodged a special defence of self-defence.
He claims Mr Birrell verbally abused him and punched him several times.
Georgia went on: "I was taken aback and I raced downstairs. I went out to get a clear view up the hill and I saw dad walking down with my brother Jake driving in the van behind.
"Hamish was at his entrance to his house and I could hear dad speaking to him: 'Can we be civil about this? We are neighbours for God's sake'.
"Dad shouted to mum 'go on, phone the police', then dad said to us all: 'He has hit me, this is what he has done'.
"Jake and dad were looking at the bonnet of the van. They said Hamish had hit the bonnet with the dog lead and that he had hit dad across the face with the dog lead and then the bonnet.
"Dad was flushed to the face and quite red. He sat down on the patio wall. He was breathing pretty rapidly.
"He looked at me and asked: 'Has mum phoned the police?' Then I saw my dad fall back. I was shocked. I shouted: 'Dad has collapsed'.
"A delivery driver, Ian Nelson, who dropped off a parcel, came to help and tried mouth-to-mouth. Jake did CPR."
The trial before Lord Fairley, which is expected to last a week, continues.
