Mark Cummings would now be a 29 year old man. Tragically he never reached 10 years, because his life was taken from him by the paedophile Stuart Leggate, who lived in the same Glasgow High rise building, he lured him to his flat and after murdering him, threw his little lifeless body down the rubbish chute and into the waste bin below.
Judge Lord Dawson told the High Court in Glasgow that Leggate was “highly dangerous” when caging him in October 2004 - but took account of his guilty plea by recommending he serve a minimum of 20 years of his life sentence behind bars.
Leggate had been released in September 1999 after serving a sentence for assaulting boys aged three to 10.
Leggate is now up for parole.
In our latest episode of Crime Time Inc, we speak to Martin Lupton, who took the iconic photograph of Stuart Leggate you see in the picture above.
We wondered what you, our Crime Time Inc listeners, make of this, and what you would decide if you were on the parole board. A thankless task for sure.
Do you believe that he's served his time and is entitled to his freedom and a chance to reform and lead a worthwhile life. That prison is not only a punishment but a place where those serving long sentences must be allowed the one thing that keeps most people able to function on a day to day basis. Hope.
Or, are you in the opposite camp, like me, believing that if someone poses even the slightest risk to our children, we owe it to them to keep them safe. I've no doubt that Leggate has not assaulted, molested or murdered any innocent children over the last 20 years, and that he may well have been a model prisoner whilst incarcerated. What I'm not sure about, and am unwilling to take a risk on, is that he won't reoffend when he's allowed to settle back into a community, like the estate he lived in before, when he brutally murdered little Mark Cummings.
The acid test for me is to ask myself would I be happy to have him resettled in an area where either of my grandchildren live. Aged 8 and 4 years. The answer is emphatic I'm afraid. So why should any other parent or grand parent have this type of animal in their midst. Let us know your thoughts and opinions.
You can vote here
Let's find out what you, the public think about this matter.
Related Posts
What is LEAP?
I often refer to my ongoing campaign to have our obsolete drug laws changed, so thought it appropriate to clarify my position and that of t...
The World's End Murders. The Final Chapter?
There really is nothing like bringing a new life into the world. A very special event when perspectives can change and much of what has gon...
Police Scotland's £13m step into 21st century will put truth of many incidents beyond doubt
Cameras are everywhere in modern society. Finally, police officers are about to get personal, tamper-proof ones that should quickly clear u...