The horrifying violence unleashed by Finlay MacDonald in the Highlands two years ago has raised questions about the police response, firearms licensing and the deployment of armed officers across rural Scotland.
On 10 August 2022 MacDonald stabbed his wife Rowena and shot dead his brother-in-law John MacKinnon, before then attempting to murder John MacKenzie and his wife Fay.
MacDonald was jailed on Friday for at least 28 years for what Judge Lady Drummond called “brutal and mindlessly violent attacks”.
The Police Investigations and Review Commissioner has completed two reports on what happened that day but so far their conclusions have not been made public.
MacDonald’s trial heard he received a shotgun certificate 15 months before the attacks and owned six of the weapons.
Although police were following him after he killed Mr MacKinnon, the unarmed officers were ordered not to stop him because an armed response team was on its way from Inverness.
MacDonald then reached the village of Dornie where he shot the MacKenzies.
He was subdued by his injured victims and the officers who had disregarded their orders and rushed into the house.
When their armed colleagues arrived 15 minutes later, Mrs MacKenzie told them: “You’re too late.”
FacebookThe order to the unarmed officers not to stop MacDonald’s car after the first shooting was “absolutely right at that time,” according to the Scottish Police Federation.
The officers were seconds behind MacDonald when he shot the MacKenzies at their home in Dornie and SPF chairman David Threadgold praised their bravery as “unbelievable.”
A former senior officer from Police Scotland’s command structure backed the instruction given to the officers.
“It would have been an unfair fight,” he said. “They were simply not equipped to deal with the threat that they faced.”
Police Scotland has a total of 494 authorised firearms officers, with their deployment based on the prevalence of firearms incidents as opposed to the prevalence of firearms.
Most incidents take place in the central belt while most legally held weapons are in the north of the country.
The Inverness armed response vehicle was based almost 100 miles from Teangue on Skye, where MacDonald killed Mr MacKinnon.
“There are challenges that we have with the number of firearms officers that we can deploy across Scotland and they are exacerbated across rural areas,” said Mr Threadgold.
Any decision to arm more officers would be controversial. In 2020-21, two homicides involving firearms took place in Scotland, compared to one the previous year.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Proportionate policing plans for the deployment of armed officers are in place across all communities in Scotland. However, we do not disclose the specific provision of any policing resources in order to maintain operational integrity.”
‘A very clear argument’
Free Church pastor Reverend Gordon Matheson knew MacDonald and said the time taken for an armed response “is too long”.
He added: “The first line of defence for our communities is not the armed response team. The first line of defence is making sure firearms licensing is done well at the beginning.
“That has to be taken more seriously in the Highlands, where we have the highest level of gun ownership in the UK and some of the highest levels of male depression in the UK.
“There’s a very clear argument that this should be done better and it should be properly resourced.”
On March 31, 2023, some 131,253 shotguns were legally held in Scotland but their use in firearms incidents is rare and lower than any other weapon.
A shotgun certificate lasts five years. To get one, applicants have to prove they do not pose a threat to public safety and have a good reason to own one.
Certificates are granted by Police Scotland firearms inquiry officers, who are required to interview a referee for the applicant, carry out background checks and conduct home visits and security checks.
It is the responsibility of the certificate holder to inform the police if they are diagnosed or treated for a relevant medical condition such as mental ill health.
Police Scotland can revoke a certificate if they believe there is a risk to public safety and did so 94 times in 2022/23.
PA MediaThe jury at the High Court in Edinburgh heard MacDonald was prone to angry outbursts and had a long standing anxiety about his health.
In the months leading up to the shootings he was signed off work and visited his GP frequently with physical complaints.
Experts who gave evidence at the trial agreed MacDonald had been showing signs of depression and anxiety in the run up to the attacks.
So far, none of the circumstances surrounding MacDonald’s possession of his shotgun certificate has been made public.
Police Scotland said: “The circumstances relating to this matter are subject to a Crown-directed investigation by the Police Investigation and Review Commissioner (PIRC), and it would therefore be inappropriate to comment further, however, Police Scotland has fully supported all investigations relating to this issue.”
PIRC said it submitted a report on the circumstances surrounding John McKinnon’s death to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service last November.
A second PIRC report was handed over to Police Scotland in June 2023, examining the involvement of its officers in the shooting in Dornie.
PIRC says its reports are confidential “for legal reasons.”
In England and Wales the policing minister Dame Diana Johnson has announced the introduction of new mandatory training for firearms licencing staff, in the wake of the killing of five people in a mass shooting in Plymouth in 2021.
All applicants for a firearms licence must now have a digital firearms marker on their medical records.
The Home Office said Police Scotland has been involved in discussions about the new training with the College of Policing, and “will participate on a voluntary basis as observers.”
A Scottish government spokesman told BBC Scotland News: “Firearms law, apart from air weapons, is the responsibility of the UK Government.
“Police Scotland’s Firearm and Explosives Licensing team manage applications and renewals for firearm and air weapon licences.
“Mandatory training is in place and the licence application and renewal process uses GP record checks as part of the vetting and assessment process.
“We will update these processes if required in line with UK guidance.”
In England and Wales, five police forces are trialling a process of compulsory routine interviews with the domestic partners of certificate holders or people who have applied for one.
The initiative is supported by Rhiannon Bragg. She was held at gunpoint by her former partner, who began stalking her after she ended their relationship.
“I think it would be really useful if the licensing process went from five years down to every three years,” she said.
“So much can happen within a five year period. Within that time we’ve all lived through a global pandemic and it’s highly recognized that there have been mental health issues for many people as a result of that.”
In the wake of MacDonald’s attacks, the Scottish Affairs Committee at Westminster recommended changes to gun regulations, with a particular focus on mental health.
