A jury trial was dramatically interrupted for a second successive day when a mother of an alleged victim broke down in tears describing her daughter’s injuries.
Rory MacMillan denies charges of abusing four former partners, two of whom were pregnant, stalking one of them, throwing a puppy against a wall and behaving in a threatening manner.
During the first day of evidence, he accused one witness of lying under oath before being warned by the Sheriff to sit quietly.
But during 45 year old Jane Cole’s evidence about incidents involving her 26 year old daughter, Hollie, she sobbed after recalling her daughter being hurt after being attacked by MacMillan.
She had kept her composure as she told the jury of several occasions where she saw Hollie battered and bruised, accusing MacMillan for inflicting the injuries.
Ms Cole said: “We used to keep in touch virtually every day. But when she got involved with Rory, it all stopped.
“I got a call from her to say she was pregnant. When she was about three months, she came to my work. She had bruises on her face, arms and wrists and a black eye. She was thin anyway, but she was skinny, gaunt and looked uncared for.
“She had been living with Rory.”
The witness said that MacMillan attacked her again when she was six months, and she had fingermarks on her neck. Her lip was burst, she had stitches and was on a drip.
Another former partner, Donna Carson (30), told of instances where MacMillan would shout and swear at her and “growl” in her face.
On one occasion after they had split up because of his abuse, she said she was ill in bed when MacMillan came to her house, threw a phone at her and dragged her out of bed by her hair.
Ms Carson said she stayed with him because she loved him and he kept promising he would change.
“I fell for it. But I was never so happy as when I ended it. I never phoned the police because I felt he would do worse to me if I did.”
Questioned by defence advocate Bill Adam, she denied she was lying. “It did happen.” she insisted.
The trial continues.