A DRUNKEN father killed his wife and their young son before attempting to commit suicide.
Garry Lockhart, 33, strangled his wife of three years Janet, 29, and smothered two-year-old Michael after an argument at home in Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, last December 28.
He later described his wife as an "amazing mum" and the boy as a "perfect son" as someone who meant "everything" to him.
Lockhart, an inmate at Saughton Prison, Edinburgh, was found in a car parked in a layby having taken tablets.
The evidence emerged at the High Court in Edinburgh, where Lockhart is accused of murder. He denies the charges, but has admitted killing his wife and son.
The court heard concerns grew about the whereabouts of the family after Mrs Lockhart's mother and father had not heard from her shortly after they had spent Christmas together.
Her father, John Hood, 58, said his wife had gone to the Lockharts' family home on December 28, where Mrs Lockhart's car was parked. Garry Lockhart's car was missing.
Mr Hood said he contacted the police. That evening Mr Hood went with officers to the house. He rang his daughter's mobile and they could hear it ringing inside the property.
Inside, the bodies of Mrs Lockhart and Michael were found in the main bedroom, together with three notes, one of which read: "I am not a bad person. Shots of alcohol made me bad. I hope I rot in hell". Another informed the police the letter's author had "killed my family" and another added: "How could I kill Janet and Michael. They were my life. I loved Janet and Michael".
Lockhart was later taken to hospital by ambulance after a police officer found him in a disorientated state in a car by the A703 between Penicuk and Peebles. Lockhart admitted feeling suicidal.
The court also heard how a former colleague of Lockhart at a funeral parlour said the accused adored his family and had been looking forward to spending Christmas with them.
However, Paul Simpson, 33, said Lockhart had been "hysterical" in a telephone conversation with him on December 28. The witness said Lockhart kept saying: "I have lost my family and done something stupid'." Mr Simpson added: "I asked him about that. He said, 'They are away. I have done something really bad'. He was talking very, very quickly and crying".
Mr Simpson said he thought there had been an argument and Mrs Lockhart had gone to her parents. Advocate Depute Iain McSporran, QC, asked Mr Simpson if he thought something had happened to Janet and Michael. "No" said Mr Simpson "He adored his wife and child. He would never harm them".
The court heard Lockhart had written to Mr Simpson from prison, telling him he had tried to take his own life, adding, "I wish I had not got drunk that night". The letter described Janet as a soul mate and an "amazing woman" and Michael as "a perfect son".
Mr Hood accepted under cross-examination from Mr McSporran that his son-in-law was prone to drinking, which had caused problems in the relationship.
Asked what impact the deaths had had on him, Mr Hood said: "There are no words to describe it."
The trial continues.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article