IT MAY be the final word on the Shirley McKie scandal, but the publication of yesterday's parliamentary report did nothing to end the torment for Marion Ross's family.
A decade after the reclusive former bank clerk was murdered, her family described Miss Ross as the "forgotten victim" of the affair.
"Every now and again they show a picture of Marion on the television, but it's always in connection with the Shir
ley McKie case," said Elizabeth Campbell, a relative.
"Fair enough to the woman - she lost her job and deserved compensation. But whatever happened to the real victim behind all this?"
Mrs Campbell, who was initially considered a suspect, also expressed anger that Miss Ross's killer has never been brought to justice.
Miss Ross was murdered on 6 January, 1997. Her ribs had been crushed and she had been stabbed in the eye with a pair of scissors, which were left embedded in her throat.
Because the 51-year-old victim was security-conscious and there were no signs of forced entry at her home, detectives were convinced she knew her killer. They believed she had allowed the person into her semi-detached bungalow in Irvine Road, Kilmarnock.
Mrs Campbell and her husband, Jim, who is a cousin of Miss Ross, were questioned by police, compounding the trauma of Miss Ross's murder. Their clothes and shoes were seized for forensic examination, while investigators dug up their garden. Police even had to provide them with new apparel.
Mr Campbell, now 61, a security officer, was initially considered among the main suspects because he had access to Miss Ross's home, his fingerprints were found inside and there were discrepancies in his work logs at the time.
Mr Campbell's brother William, 57, was also regarded as a suspect. He had done odd jobs and gardening for Miss Ross. His fingerprints were also found, on a vacuum cleaner near the body.
Mrs Campbell, who is recovering from breast cancer, said her health had suffered as a direct result of the case.
"Jim and I were treated like criminals from the start," she added. "Jim went round to her house after she hadn't been seen for a few days and he saw her lying there.
"Shirley McKie even came round here with items they had found in Marion's house that had nothing to do with us.
"I'm not surprised the system has been criticised today."
Miss Ross was described as "eccentric" and "a loner". It is believed the former Royal Bank of Scotland worker had experienced mental health problems after her parents died.
David Asbury, a joiner who was 20 at the time of the murder, was convicted of killing Miss Ross, partly on fingerprint evidence. Asbury had previously carried out work on her home.
He was jailed for life in 1997.
When the Court of Criminal Appeal quashed his murder conviction in August 2002, Strathclyde Police confirmed that they were "not looking for anyone else in connection with the murder of Marion Ross".
However, a force spokeswoman last night declined to comment on the case.
During the trial, Asbury insisted he had been framed. He claimed that a Marks & Spencer biscuit tin discovered packed with money at his home had been taken to the mortuary so Miss Ross's fingerprint could be put on it. However, he was found guilty by a majority verdict.
The High Court in Glasgow was also told that £1,400 in cash found in the tin included some in £100 bundles - the same "peculiar" way Miss Ross had arranged notes when she was a bank clerk.
The 13-day trial also heard that although he initially denied having entered Miss Ross's house since working on an extension two years earlier, Asbury eventually told police that his car had broken down 100 yards from her home the day before the murder.
He claimed Miss Ross let him in to use the telephone.
Asbury, of Kilbirnie, Ayrshire, had become a suspect after his mother, Amelia Crisp, reported that he had disappeared and had left a suicide note along with instructions on where to find the money.
He is now seeking compensation for his wrongful conviction.
Mrs Campbell admitted that the family had been left traumatised by knowing that Miss Ross's killer was still on the streets.
She said: "I don't think they'll ever find who did it and I don't think there will ever be justice for Marion. But now it's all become the Shirley McKie case. Whatever happened to the Marion Ross case?"
Q &
A: FINGERPRINTING
When w
as
fingerprinting introduced?
Fingerprinting has been used by police since the beginning of the 20th century.
How do f
orensic scientists collect fingerprints?
Officers traditionally used powder to pick up prints, but digital cameras and chemicals can also be used.
What met
hod is used to identify fingerprints?
For 50 years in Scotland a "points-based" system, requiring at least 16 matching characteristics between a print and the accused, was used. But after the McKie case, a non-numeric system was brought in from England and the US. It assesses the quality and uniqueness of the print, rather than the number of similar points.
How reli
able is it?
Despite controversies such as the McKie case, fingerprinting remains the most commonly used forensic evidence worldwide. No two prints have been found alike in many billions of human and computer comparisons.
What hap
pens if someone gets it wrong?
If experts cannot agree on a fingerprint, it is usually dismissed from a case. In exceptional cases, such as Shirley McKie, where the fingerprint is disputed, the accused can be cleared if there is no other evidence.
Will fin
gerprinting continue to be used in Scotland?
More recent techniques, such as DNA evidence, are increasingly being used by police. But fingerprinting remains a common tool of police and solves ten times more unknown-suspect cases than DNA.
