THE former wife of an MSP has told a court he punched her in the eye two weeks before their wedding.
Bill Walker, 71, is on trial at Edinburgh Sheriff Court accused of assaults against four women over 28 years. The independent member for Dunfermline denies all the charges.
His first wife Maureen Traquair told the court she had to buy concealer for their wedding day in January 1967 after the argument.
Walker is alleged to have assaulted her on three occasions at addresses in Edinburgh.
Ms Traquair, 66, also told about the couple's life in Chicago, where they moved after the wedding. She said: "Bill didn't want me to work. I had to refuse the first job I was offered."
Under cross examination, artist, photographer and shop owner Ms Traquair denied telling a "pack of lies."
She said: "I'm not a person who is vengeful."
Walker denies 23 charges of assault and one breach of the peace. The MSP, from Alloa, Clackmannanshire, is alleged to have attacked Maureen Traquair, Anne Walker, Anne Louise Paterson and Diana Walker between January 1967 and January 1995 at various addresses.
He has lodged a special defence of self defence in relation to three charges.
The trial continues.
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article