I arrived at the High Court around 9am and I saw the media already outside. I walked by a police officer and some members of the public. I waited a good few feet away from the entrance and went on my phone to check news reports and come on here. I then looked up from my phone and Angela looked right at me as she walked a foot in front of me. It took me a second to process who she was and then I felt awful for her. I saw Calum as well, walking beside her. I then realised the media started taking photos so I had to move around a wall to the side.
I lingered outside for 5 minutes or so and then decide to go inside. Did the usual security/metal detector check and was feeling pretty nervous. I had never been in the High Court before. I walked over to one of the screens to look for the sentencing, it said it was in Court 6. I then saw Rab standing in a corner. I sat down on one of the chairs. There were quite a lot of police, barristers, a bunch of other legal staff plus there were I think 3 other cases going on at the same time so families and friends for other trials were coming and going too. I even heard a few people saying "It's even busier than normal today". I then saw Toni and Rab walking together, I think they had just come out of a witness room. Shortly after that I saw Georgina arrive, she looked distraught but she gave a woman a hug and she was surrounded by family. It must have been about 9:20am now and it was expected to start at 9;30am. I was getting even more nervous as it went on. I saw Georgina and her family get taken into a separate room and I assume they were getting briefed on certain things. We were waiting around for a while. A police officer came over and asked if I was a member of the public and wanting to go into Court 6, I said yes and she reminded me that no photographs were allowed. I kept checking on here for updates and comments to pass the time as it felt like it was going in so slowly. It started to get busier as the time went on.
It was around 10:30am when the family were called into the courtroom first. Then after that the press were called in and finally the public. We were told that the press had to keep their phones on silent and all members of the public were to keep their phones switched off. I walked into the room and it felt really sombre, I'd never been into a courtroom and didn't know quite what to expect or what the layout would be like. There were rows of two seats on the left hand side, the stairs as you walked in, the larger main seating area in the middle and then more rows of two seats on the right hand side. It was nearly full, I ended up sitting near a lot of the press right at the front in the middle. The family were sat right in the centre in the middle. There was a wooden partition with glass on top that separated us from the Aaron and the rest of the court. Aaron walked in with two guards. One male and one female who sat either side of him with their back to us. He was handcuffed to the female guard. He was wearing a grey suit, the same one from prom and the trial I believe. He had longish hair which swooped down into a fringe. Mr McConnachie was sat in front of Aaron sideways on and to the right. The judge came in and we all stood up.
One of the first thing that struck us was when Lord Matthews told us about the psychologist report and informed us that Aaron had admitted responsibility for the crime. I'm sure there were a few audible gasps in the room. The atmosphere was so tense. Most of the rest of it was Mr McConnachie's speech which was well reported in the press. He spoke about Aaron's "less than ideal family life", how his age should be taken into consideration, how he has admitted his guilt etc. You could hear the press constantly writing in their notepads and tweeting. Lord Matthews spoke about how the awful the crime was and how he didn't want to go into the specific details of it. He then spoke about the psychologist report of Dr Macpherson. Which the Dr himself apparently said was "very pessimistic", indicating that Aaron fit a lot of the criteria for the psychopathy checklist, that he was sexually violent, that he showed no empathy or remorse. The Judge then went away to deliberate, Aaron turned to leave and he glanced at me for a split second, we made brief eye-contact as I was pretty much one of the first people he would see as he turned to leave. It was really weird honestly. Seeing him in person - and also all of Alesha's family - was odd. It felt surreal after following the trial for so long. I knew they were real people obviously but to actually see them in person was a different matter. It was about 10:50am or thereafter I think, when we went left the courtroom for the first time.
We all waited outside again and it was quite nerve-wracking. I saw Toni over at the water-cooler speaking to a few people. I think she was trying to smile and act normal but it must have been really hard for her. The family were taken into rooms again. We were recalled fairly quickly. We entered back into the courtroom same as before - family, press, public. That was when the livestream sentencing began which I'm sure you all saw. Judge Matthews went through everything that I'm sure you all heard, the worst part for me like I said before was when he spoke about Alesha and said that she asked Aaron who he was and he said "A friend of your dads" and that he was going to "take her home". He gave her his hoodie because she was cold and honestly that nearly made me cry. People in the room were visibly upset, it was horrible to listen to. The other things we heard about him trying not to laugh during his trial, about him having fantasies of rape, about how he abducted her were just disgusting. It felt horrible being in that room so I don't know how it must have felt for her family. Toni started sobbing and I saw Rab comfort her but then she ran out of the courtroom. Judge Matthews stopped speaking for a brief moment while it happened and everyone in the courtroom was obviously a bit distressed except Aaron. He didn't even seem to flinch. He appeared emotionless and cold throughout the entire thing. He barely moved except a couple of times to run his fingers through his hair or when he pursed his lips once. The only time I saw emotion from him was when Lord Matthews sentenced him to 27 years and Georgina started shouting at him, he was being led out of the courtroom and he smiled at her. I was literally a foot or so away from him and saw it right through the glass partition and it was horrifying. He seemed to be revelling in her sadness. I don't think I've seen someone in real life so callous and so lacking in empathy. After that, it certainly confirmed to me that he was an unabashed psychopath and I felt sick.
Everyone was pretty speechless after that, the room was quiet. We were all led out and a lot of people were visibly upset. I saw Georgina being led into a room by a police officer, I think she was trying to help her and calm her down. I waited a little bit until the crowd dispersed then I left. The media were totally focused on the door. The cameras were trained, waiting for the family to come out. I know it's their job but they really are like vultures some times.
So yeah that was pretty much my summary. It was a heartbreaking day honestly and one I don't think I'll forget in a long time. My heart really goes out to her family. I'm sure I've forgotten some things or details but that's what I remember to the best of my knowledge. If you have any questions feel free to message me! And thank you very much for all the support.
At least some form of justice has been done, even if it's not the way everyone would have wanted. He'll be behind bars for a very long time, if not the rest of his life. It still saddens me to know that, that beautiful little girl will never get to grow up. Rest in peace Alesha.
