Man 'gouged out woman's eyeball'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/scotland/tayside_and_central/8254753.stm

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A man is to stand trial over claims he attempted to murder a woman by gouging out her eye and throwing it over an eighth-floor balcony.

Francis Murphy, 26, denies two charges of attempting to murder Natalie Farrell at Dalfield Court in the city.

It is alleged Ms Farrell, 27, suffered the attack at a tower block in Dundee during two separate bids to kill her on the same day.

Mr Murphy also denies assaulting her and another man.

He is accused of holding Ms Farrell prisoner in a bedroom and attacking her before attempting to gouge out her eye with a metal hook and his fingers.

A second attempted murder charge alleges she was attacked again on the eighth floor landing of the Dalfield block when Mr Murphy chased her from the flat.

The charge states that he then tried to throw her over the balcony and "pulled and detached her eyeball" and threw it over the balcony.

Reduced charges

Solicitor advocate Gail Goodfellow told judge Lord Brailsford at the High Court in Edinburgh that Mr Murphy was prepared to admit reduced charges of serious assault.

She indicated to the court that Mr Murphy would plead guilty to assaulting Ms Farrell to her severe injury, permanent impairment and permanent disfigurement.

The lawyer said Mr Murphy contested some of the allegations of violence in the charges - such as throttling Ms Farrell until she lost consciousness and trying to throw her from the high-rise balcony.

However, Ms Goodfellow made no attempt to delete from the charges the allegation that Ms Farrell lost her eye during the incident on 29 May.

Advocate depute Derick Nelson, prosecuting, blocked the move to have the charges reduced and demanded that Mr Murphy should go to trial on the two attempted murder charges.

Lord Brailsford fixed a trial date for 29 October and remanded Mr Murphy in custody until then.