King v (1) David Christopher Gill (2) Lesley Ann Dodds (3) William Gill (4) Andrew Leslie (5) Jonathan Richard Leslie Montgomery
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Judge | Scoffield J |
| Judgment Date | 22 June 2023 |
| Neutral Citation | [2023] NICC 21 |
| Court | Crown Court (Northern Ireland) |
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Neutral Citation No: [2023] NICC 21
Judgment: approved by the court for handing down
(subject to editorial corrections)*
Ref: SCO12225
ICOS No: 21/064133
Delivered: 22/06/2023
IN THE CROWN COURT IN NORTHERN IRELAND
SITTING IN BELFAST
___________
THE KING
v
(1) DAVID CHRISTOPHER GILL
(2) LESLEY ANN DODDS
(3) WILLIAM GILL
(4) ANDREW LESLIE
(5) JONATHON RICHARD LESLIE MONTGOMERY
SENTENCING REMARKS
AND TARIFF RULING RE FIRST DEFENDANT
David McDowell KC and Michael Chambers (instructed by the Public Prosecution
Service for Northern Ireland) for the Crown
Ciaran Murphy KC and Michael McAleer (instructed by McConnell Kelly & Co,
Solicitors) for the first defendant
Eilis McDermott KC and Taylor Campbell (instructed by Donnelly & Wall, Solicitors) for
the second defendant
Neil Connor KC and Richard McConkey (instructed by Trevor Smyth & Co, Solicitors)
for the third defendant
John Kearney KC and Sean Mullen (instructed by Donnelly & Wall, Solicitors) for the
fourth defendant
Gavan Duffy KC and Conor Holmes (instructed Flynn & McGettrick, Solicitors) for the
fifth defendant
SCOFFIELD J
Introduction
[1] There are five defendants before the court whose offending arises from an
incident on 30 May 2019 when Mr William McCormick, known as ‘Pat’, was
assaulted and sustained injuries which led to his death. In the first and second
defendants’ cases, their offending relates to that incident. In the case of the third to
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fifth defendants, it relates to the aftermath – or what might be described as the ‘cover
up’ – of Mr McCormick’s death.
[2] The defendants were arraigned on 17 September 2021 and each pleaded ‘not
guilty.’ The trial was first listed to commence on 23 May 2022. On 20 May 2022, the
first defendant (David Gill) pleaded guilty to count 1 on the bill of indictment,
namely the murder of Mr McCormick. The trial needed to be postponed for a short
period as a result, in order to allow the Crown to reformulate its case in light of this
important development. Shortly afterwards, on 25 May 2022, the fifth defendant
(Jonathan Montgomery) pleaded guilty to an offence of withholding information on
count 9. The following day, the third defendant (William Gill) pleaded guilty on
count 3 to the same offence. In light of those and other developments, the trial of the
remaining defendants was re-listed for November 2022. On 8 November 2022, the
second defendant (Lesley Ann Dodds) pleaded guilty to a new count 13 on the bill of
indictment, an offence of manslaughter arising from the death of Mr McCormick;
and the fourth defendant (Andrew Leslie) pleaded guilty to an offence of
withholding information on count 6. In each case, any remaining counts were left on
the books, not to be proceeded with without further order of this court or of the
Court of Appeal.
[3] Mr McDowell KC and Mr Chambers appeared for the Crown; Mr Murphy KC
and Mr McAleer appeared for the first defendant; Ms McDermott KC and
Mr Campbell for the second defendant; Mr Connor KC and Mr McConkey for the
third defendant; Mr Kearney KC and Mr Mullen for the fourth defendant; and
Mr Duffy KC and Mr Holmes for the fifth defendant. I am grateful to all counsel for
their helpful written and oral submissions in relation to this sentencing exercise.
Factual Background
[4] The facts set out below are matters which are either non-contentious; agreed,
by way of being set out in an agreed basis of plea or otherwise; or of which I have
been satisfied to the criminal standard by information and evidence provided by th e
prosecution.
[5] The victim, Pat McCormick, was a 55-year-old father of four. On the night of
30 May 2019, he went to the home of Lesley Ann Dodds, a flat in Castle Street,
Comber. Dodds was David Gill’s fiancée; but she had been having a relationship
with Pat McCormick whom she had met through their work in domiciliary care.
Mr McCormick had been lured to Dodds’ flat, predominantly by way of text
messages sent from her Facebook Messenger account which had encouraged him to
meet her there. However, rather than meeting Ms Dodds, when Mr McCormick
went to the flat, he encountered David Gill.
[6] Mr McCormick had been in the company of Dodds earlier that day, in the
morning. During the afternoon and into that evening, there was a range of
communications between the victim and Dodds; and, indeed, between her and
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