FATHER AND SON JAILED 17 YEARS FOR DRAGGING OFFICER ALONG ROAD

Douglas Mills and Douglas Mills Jnr have been jailed for 17 years each after being found guilty at the High Court in Glasgow of attempting to murder a police officer. The court heard the pair sped off in an Audi in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, in August 2024 after PC Mark Smith approached them over a suspected drug deal. Smith was partly pulled into the car as Mills Jnr drove off, then hauled along the road before being left on the ground. He suffered a fractured skull and a significant traumatic brain injury, the court was told.

Smith told prosecutors he shouted loudly that he was a police officer and had his warrant card and radio with him as he approached the Audi. He said the attack was "all very instantaneous" and that he felt himself pulled off his feet as the car moved off at speed. His colleague, PC Colin Harris, was also present and recognised Mills Jnr as the driver, having visited his home weeks earlier. Jurors were shown footage of Smith being dragged along the road, and heard he had thought he would never see his family again.

Judge William Gallacher told the pair they had "engaged in a murderous attack" that left Smith with "irreversible injuries" affecting his ability to carry out normal activities. He said it had been "a concerted conjoint attack with each of you doing separate things" and saw no reason to differentiate between the sentences imposed. The court also imposed indefinite non-harassment orders banning both men from contacting Smith. Smith has yet to return to duty two years on and fears he may never work on the frontline again, the court heard.