The man convicted of murdering pregnant Omagh schoolgirl Sylvia Fleming and cutting up her body was yesterday refused leave to appeal against his conviction and sentence.
Stephen "Bulldog" Scott (29), from Lisanelly Heights, Omagh, was in the High Court in Belfast to hear his lawyer argue he was entitled to an appeal.
Scott was sentenced to life imprisonment last April after a jury found him guilty of murdering 17 year-old Ms Fleming, whose dismembered body was buried in the foundations of a house being built at Circular Road, Omagh.
But defence QC Terence McDonald said the main issue in the case was whether Scott intended to kill the girl when he tied her up, taped her mouth and injected her with insulin during sado-sexual activity.
In a case with such emotional overlay, he said, the test of whether there was any evidence of intention to cause grievous bodily harm should have been applied more rigourously by trial judge Mr Justice Kerr due to the risks attendant upon leaving such an issue to the jury.
Leave to appeal had previously been refused by a single judge sitting in chambers. Yesterday, Scott renewed his application before the Lord Chief Justice Sir Robert Carswell, Lord Justice Nicholson and Mr Justice Higgins.
After Mr McDonald finished his submissions, the judges retired and returned to court a short time later to announce their refusal of leave to appeal.
Lord Chief Justice Carswell said they would give their reasons later.