4 September 2013

Famous murder case re-examined after 261 years

One of Scotland's greatest remaining murder mysteries - made famous by Robert Louis Stevenson in his book 'Kidnapped' - is being revisited by some of Scotland's greatest legal and forensic minds in an event organised by the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

The Appin Murder (1752) - A Re-Trial of James of the Glen, the man convicted for the killing of Colin Campbell of Glenure, The Red Fox, is taking place over two days in Fort William as part of the RSE outreach programme, RSE@Lochaber.

The event features visits to the scene of the crime and a legal panel chaired by Professor Sue Black FRSE, Head of the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification, University of Dundee, will re-examine the evidence using modern techniques.

The Appin murder remains the subject of much speculation. The consensus is that the wrong man was convicted. This two part event will discuss the historical context of the story and, taking account of modern methods of detection and scientific forensic techniques, will re-examine the evidence using expert witnesses. These will include Professor David Barclay, Forensic Scientist and Investigator; Professor Caroline Wilkinson, Professor of Craniofacial Identification; Professor Anthony Busuttil, Professor of Forensic Medicine; Lord Kenneth Cameron of Lochbroom, Judge (Retired); Professor Jim Hunter, Historian and Dr Karly Kehoe, Historian.

For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head, Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384910
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk
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