Family demands answers on 17-year delay in stab death review

The family of Colin Marr, who died from a stab wound in 2007, has criticised delays to a Crown Office review launched in 2023. The case remains disputed, with his family challenging the original suicide ruling.

The family of Colin Marr, a 23-year-old from Fife who died from a chest wound inflicted by a kitchen knife in 2007, has expressed frustration at prolonged delays in a prosecutorial review of the case. According to BBC News, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) forensic and pathology review, which commenced in May 2023, remains incomplete despite initial expectations of swifter resolution. The original police investigation ruled the death a suicide following a dispute between Marr and his fiancée Candice Bonar, a conclusion his family has consistently challenged as a miscarriage of justice.

The 2007 inquiry determined that Colin had taken his own life at his flat in Lochgelly after an argument with Bonar concerning his alleged infidelity. Bonar has maintained her innocence throughout the process. New lines of inquiry were first identified in 2021, prompting the forensic and pathology review to be launched two years later. The scope of the review expanded later in 2023 after a significant 2012 forensic report examining the stab wound was withdrawn from consideration.

Stuart Graham, Colin's stepfather, voiced the family's exasperation at the lack of progress. He stated:

We will soon be coming up for five years since we were promised a detailed revision and we get nothing. Our perspective and concern is that COPFS are attempting to push this into the long grass and hope that media concern is lost. Is it because the issues they face point at the failings of their office and this is what is being protected?

Graham, who supplied a collection of new material regarding the case to Police Scotland in 2021, added:

As always we will keep pushing. We believe they already have enough evidence to proceed.

Two pictures side by side. The one on the left as you look at it shows a young man with blonde hair in a yellow t-shirt staring at the camera. The picture on the right shows a smiling young woman with a baby sitting on her lap. — Colin, pictured here as a teenager and as a baby with mum Margaret, grew up in Fife

What do independent experts say about the evidence?

The forensic and pathology aspects of the original investigation have been questioned by independent specialists. Leading pathologist Dr Nat Cary has previously stated it was

both possible and plausible

that Colin's injury was

inflicted by a third party

, and he raised concerns about earlier police assessments of the wound's position. According to the 2011 Fatal Accident Inquiry findings, the fatal wound penetrated the lower sternum, pericardial sac and heart, but the inquiry could not determine whether Marr inflicted the wound himself or whether another person was responsible. The inquiry also found no basis to conclude that Bonar probably stabbed him.

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A 2012 Strathclyde Police review had commissioned a Dundee University forensic assessment, but according to BBC News Scotland, co-author Sue Black later stated the report was no longer valid because she had been given incorrect information about the wound's location.

What happened at the 2011 inquiry?

Colin's fiancée Ms Bonar was interviewed three times by police and voluntarily appeared in person at the 2011 fatal accident inquiry into his death. At that hearing, Sheriff Alastair Dunlop stated he could not decide whether the death was suicide or homicide. Following the inquiry, Ms Bonar said:

My name is cleared. I have always been honest and declared my innocence throughout this heart-breaking nightmare. What Colin did, he did to himself and that's the truth.

What criticisms have been made of the original investigation?

Both COPFS and Fife Police, now part of Police Scotland, have previously issued reports that were critical of the original investigation into Colin's death and have apologised to his family. The Police Investigations and Review Commissioner upheld 12 complaints over the force's handling of the case, according to findings from 2014.

What is the current status of the review?

A spokesperson for COPFS said:

We recognise how frustrating delays can be for those grieving the loss of a loved one and will continue to keep the family updated on significant developments in this complex investigation. Our inquiries are nearing completion. Once finalised, all of the evidence will be reviewed by an independent senior prosecutor who has had no previous involvement in the case.

What happens next?

Once the further inquiries are completed, the evidence will be reviewed by a prosecutor with no previous involvement in the case. However, no date for that review or a final decision has been reported by authorities.