East Kilbride woman tells court she woke to find friend dying in her living room

A shop assistant yesterday told a murder trial that she woke up to find a friend dying in her living room.

Louise Le Feuvre, 22, was giving evidence at the trial of her partner David Shannon who denies murdering his pal Spencer Borland by stabbing him on the body with a knife on May 14, last year in East Kilbride.

Shop assistant Miss Le Feuvre told prosecutor Mark McGuire that she had been at a works night out and woke at 5am after hearing "a thump.”

She broke down in tears as she told the jury: “Spencer was lying in the corner of the living room on the floor. David was standing next to the couch. He told me to phone an ambulance. He looked shocked and he was crying.”

The High Court in Glasgow heard that Mr Borland, 41, of Liddell Grove, East Kilbride, had been in the flat she shared with 28-year-old Shannon when Miss Le Feuvre returned from her night out.

Mr Borland then left, but had returned in the early hours of the morning while she was sleeping.

She said: “I was woken out of a drunken sleep. It was all a blur, running out to a guy on my living room floor.

Mr McGuire asked her: “Where was Mr Borland,” and she replied: “He was kind of slouched down. I ran over to him and said: 'Spencer, Spencer what the f***'s going on.”

The prosecutor then said: “Did Mr Borland reply,” and Miss Le Feuvre said: “No. His eyes just rolled to the back of his head.”

The jurors heard that both Miss Le Feuvre and Shannon took turns to perform CPR on Mr Borland while they waited for paramedics to arrive.

The witness was asked if Shannon had told her what happened and said he said that Mr Borland had stabbed him on the hand and he stabbed him in the back.

She added: “He did say he didn't mean to stab him. He said it was an accident.”

Defence QC Gordon Jackson said: “There was some kind of fight, altercation between the two men in the living room and Mr Shannon got stabbed in the hand and Mr Borland got stabbed in the back,” and Miss Le Feuvre replied: “Yes.'

Mr Jackson then asked: “David and Spencer were friends?” and she replied: “Yes.”

The QC then said: “Earlier that night before Spencer left was it friendly,” and Miss Le Feuvre said: “Yes.”

Mr Borland's mother retired lecturer Sandra Borland told the court the last time she spoke to her son was on the phone hours before he died.

Mrs Borland, 70, said that on May 13, last year, she had spent the day with her son. They had gone shopping and then they had chatted at her home for a couple of hours before he left at 7.30pm.

She added: “At 9pm Spencer phoned and asked if he could come back round. I said I was just about falling asleep and he said ' Okay, I'll see you in the morning.'”

Mr McGuire said: “That was the last time you spoke to your son,” and she replied: “Yes.”

The retired lecturer told the jury that her son claimed he owed money to Shannon for cocaine and she had given him hundreds of pounds to pay off his alleged debt.

Mr Jackson asked Mrs Borland: “You are telling us what you were told by Spencer. He said he needed to get money to give to David because people were threatening David,” and she replied: “Yes.”

The trial before judge Lord Ericht continues.