Colin Kennedy was convicted of the murder of Catherine Stewart, whom he stabbed during a domestic argument in July 2021. Kennedy claimed his actions were influenced by a delusional disorder, but the jury rejected his defense, and he was convicted of murder.

The sentencing judge imposed a punishment part of 24 years, with an additional year for partner abuse, describing the crime as one of the worst domestic violence cases he had seen. Kennedy appealed, arguing the punishment was excessive and citing mitigating factors such as his admission of guilt and stress.

The court noted the attack was impulsive rather than premeditated and compared the case to similar domestic murder cases, including *Rizzo v HM Advocate* and *HM Advocate v Boyle*. The court reduced the punishment part to 23 years, considering both the aggravating factor of partner abuse and the mitigating circumstances.