Five nuns have been charged with historic abuse against several children, including allegations that some children were forced to kiss a corpse. A further hearing has been scheduled in the case.
Marie Docherty, 84, Mary Broderick, 84, Margaret McLafferty, 68, Kathleen McLean, 77, and Mary Doyle, 81, are listed on an indictment containing 108 charges. The allegations span 17 years, with offences claimed to have occurred primarily at Nazareth House facilities in Aberdeen and Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, between 1965 and 1982.
Charges include forced eating and burning
The indictment includes a claim that Docherty compelled a boy to eat rotten food, beat him with a wooden stick, made him stand while wearing soiled bedding, and confined him in a room.
Another charge claims Docherty pressed a hot iron onto a teenage girl's hand and repeatedly beat her on her head and body, and forced her to lie in bed. Docherty allegedly denied another girl food, causing her to collapse. The same girl also allegedly had soap shoved into her mouth, which made her sick. The charges claim that her head was then thrust into the vomit, and she was ordered to consume it.
Corpse-kissing allegations and court schedule
Further charges claim that Docherty, Broderick, and Doyle made some children kiss a corpse. The indictment also contains claims that children were punched, beaten, kicked, force-fed, and made to stand while wearing soiled bedding or clothing.
A preliminary hearing occurred at the High Court in Glasgow before Lord Renucci, who set a further preliminary hearing for January 22, 2027. The court has allocated eight weeks for a trial commencing on March 30, 2027, in Glasgow. The defendants have previously entered pleas of not guilty.
