A SCOT accused of shooting dead his mother and stepfather at their home in the United States has been ordered to stand trial on two counts of first-degree murder.

Derek Connell could face the death penalty for killing his mother, Kim Higginbotham, and her American husband, Christopher.

The couple, both 48, were found dead at their home in Bakersfield, California, on April 30 by police officers.

Mr Connell, 29, originally from Shawlands, Glasgow, confessed to the killings during a preliminary court hearing this week.

However, his lawyer Paul Cadman said there was no evidence of premeditation or malice on his part and argued he should be tried for second-degree murder or voluntary manslaughter.

Kern County Superior Court Judge Thomas C. Clark turned down his request and said Mr Connell’s statements showed “a fair amount” of thought and
planning after the killings. 

Mr Connell has said he used bleach in an effort to clean up blood pooled around the bodies.

Mr Cadman said the killings were a result of post-traumatic stress disorder and drug addiction problems which Mr Connell suffered after serving with the US army in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He said: “Derek is disappointed by the decision of the magistrate to continue this case as a death penalty case since the preliminary hearing showed clearly that he has no recollection of the events and certainly had no premeditation, deliberation, or malice aforethought regarding the incident.
“He believes he did it but he doesn’t know how.

“His heroic yet frightening experiences servingg our country in Iraq and Afghanistan and the subsequent substance abuse problems... that he was forced to deal with due to his horrific experiences remain directly responsible for the tragedy that has unfolded in this case.”

During an interview played to the court, Mr Connell told investigators he believed he had killed his mother and stepfather. 

“I had to have done it,” he said. “There was no-one else in the house.” 
Mr Connell said he spent the evening drinking heavily, then returned to his parents’ home. He began living with them after serving a nine-month jail sentence for drink driving in Colorado.

He told investigators he spoke with his stepfather briefly before going to bed. They did not argue, and he said he got along well with both his mother and stepfather.

Mr Connell said the next thing he recalled was finding their bodies. He cried as he described lying next to his mother’s body and telling her he was sorry.
Investigators pushed him for information as to what happened from the time he went to bed to discovering the bodies, but Mr Connell said he could not remember anything.

Two shotguns, five handguns and seven rifles were seized from the home. Mr Connell said the weapons belonged to his stepfather.

Mr Connell served in the US Army from 2005 to 2008, and was discharged due to an incident involving alcohol, he said in court filings. He went on to work in oil fields in Colorado and Texas.

Mr Connell was born in Rutherglen Maternity and lived with his mother in Shawlands on Glasgow’s south side as a child.

She worked as a secretary and met her future husband while he was stationed with the US navy in Scotland and She moved with her son to be with her husband when he went back to America more than 20 years ago. Before her death, she had worked for 16 years as a teacher at an the Princeton Street elementary school.

The next hearing in the case is scheduled for next month.