Bullen pleads guilty to Kirkwall bedsit murder
But victim’s family must wait three weeks to draw line under case

Paul Steven Bullen faces a life sentence for murder when appears in the High Court on October 15.

A 21-year-old killer is awaiting a life sentence after the first Orkney death to result in a murder verdict since Victorian times more than 100 years ago.

Paul Steven Bullen made a brief appearance at the High Court in Edinburgh on Monday to plead guilty to an amended indictment, admitting to the murder of Kirkwall man Tommy Miller on May 29, 2001.

Bullen will return to the High Court on October 15 for the formalities of sentencing. The public will also have to wait until then for the narration of the prosecution case which will be the first time that the details of the events in a Kirkwall bedsit on the fateful May evening have been given in open court.

However, there are now likely to be further repercussions outside the courtroom with Mr Jim Wallace, Orkney’s MSP and Scotland’s Justice Minister, being asked to investigate claims that thousands of pounds of public money have been wasted by the Crown Office’s handling of the case.

Questions were being asked yesterday why members of Mr Miller’s family and 20 potential witnesses in the case had to spend up to a week in Edinburgh when, according to his defence counsel, it had always been Bullen’s intention to offer the guilty plea.

One estimate of the unnecessary cost to the public purse was put at £30,000 this week.

Bullen, with short cropped hair and wearing a blue shirt and tie, was in the dock for just five minutes during Monday’s hearing before Lord Abernethy.

When he had first appeared at Kirkwall Sheriff Court, his address had been given as c/o SACRO, 30-34 St Catherine’s Place, Kirkwall, but in the indictment this week he was described as a prisoner in the prison of Inverness. He reached his 21st birthday three weeks ago in prison.

Bullen had originally been indicted on two charges.

The first alleged that on May 29, 2001, at Flat 6, 22 Bignold Park Road, Kirkwall, he assaulted Hugh Robertson Sinclair, 17 Glaitness Park, Kirkwall, and did punch him repeatedly on the body to his injury.

The second alleged that Bullen, on May 29, 2001, at Flat 6, 22 Bignold Park Road, Kirkwall, did assault Thomas Grant Miller, Flat 4, 22 Bignold Park Road, Kirkwall, and did repeatedly punch and kick him on the head and body, strike him on the head with his knee, knock him down, pick him up, throw him to the floor, pour scalding hot water over him, throw cans of cider at him, strike him on the head with a basin, place a bed settee on his chest and repeatedly jump on said bed settee and did murder him.

Mr Jock Thomson QC, defence counsel for Bullen, said his client pleaded not guilty to the first charge.

He would however plead guilty to an amended second charge which deleted part of the original indictment.

The new charge he admitted was that he did assault Thomas Grant Miller and did repeatedly punch and kick him on the head and body, strike him on the head with his knee, knock him down, pick him up, throw him to the floor and did repeatedly jump on him and did murder him.

Mr Thomson told the court: “It was always Mr Bullen’s intention to offer that plea.”

Bullen’s plea was formally accepted by the Crown and recorded by Lord Abernethy.

Mr Martin Jones, for the Crown, said that as the case would have to be deferred for reports, he would arrange for the narration of the facts of the case to be heard at the same time.

Lord Abernethy said he would continue the case for social enquiry reports until October 15 at the High Court in Edinburgh. In the meantime, Bullen was remanded in custody.

The short hearing brought to an end nearly a week of uncertainty for nearly 20 witnesses who had been instructed to attend the High Court for Bullen’s trial.

Although it is understood the defence lawyers had put forward the possibility of a guilty plea, most of the potential witnesses – including two Kirkwall GPs and two ambulance staff - had already flown to Edinburgh on Tuesday of last week in anticipation of the trial starting on Wednesday, September 19.

In fact, for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, the case was scheduled on the court timetable as being for accused and counsel only, and the witnesses were told they were not required.

Kirkwall airline pilot David Miller and his wife, the brother and sister-in-law of the murder victim, visited the High Court building in Edinburgh’s Royal Mile every morning for five days. After Monday’s hearing, Mr Miller said he planned to write to Mr Wallace to express concerns about aspects of the case in Edinburght.

“The police and social workers have been very good to us and kept us fully informed but I feel sorry for so many witnesses from Orkney who were just left outside in the street for a week,” he said.

Mr Miller said he was satisfied that the right verdict had been established, although Bullen’s guilty plea had done nothing to mitigate the tragedy of the situation.

“I’m disappointed that it’s not all over today, that we have to wait another three weeks for sentencing. If it had ended today (Monday), we could have started to draw a line under the whole affair.

“It’s been a tragedy. Tommy did not deserve that – he never hurt anyone,” he said.

Like several witnesses who had been called, Mr Miller also raised the question of why the case had not been scheduled for Inverness.

“I’m surprised that the case could not have been heard a lot nearer home than Edinburgh,” he added.

Some of the potential witnesses, including the doctors and ambulance staff, were allowed to return to Orkney at the end of last week, and others, who had been due to travel south, had their travel arrangements postponed.

But one Orcadian who had attended the court for four days without being required, complained: “It’s been a shambles. I can’t understand why some witnesses were allowed to go home and others weren’t. I’ve run out of money and there have been complaints about the accommodation some people were put in. I can understand why some people have said they would never offer to give evidence again. It’s not what I expected of justice.”

Mr Wallace commented yesterday, Wednesday: “I can understand the frustration of the witnesses called, and will be asking the Crown Office to let me know the timetable of what happened.”

Speaking from the Liberal Democrats, conference in Bournemouth, he added: “When I receive Captain Miller’s letter I will make the necessary inquiries and will respond as fully as I can.”

In anticipation of a plea of not guilty, and a resulting full trial lasting a week, Orkney police had taken south all the productions, documents and exhibits needed to support their case. They even hired an Orkney Islands Council van for two days to deliver a bed settee from the murder scene to the High Court.

On Tuesday, police officers and court officials were trying to decide what to do with the item of furniture which was occupying a court witness room.