TWENTY years might have passed since Albert Dryden killed council planning executive Harry Collinson in cold blood, but the images from June 20, 1991, have lost none of their power to shock.
In front of a television crew from BBC Look North, and in full view of a number of North-East journalists, including The Northern Echo’s Mark Summers, Dryden shot Collinson with a First World War pistol as a longrunning planning saga came to a barely- believable end.
Today, on the 20th anniversary of his brother’s death, Roy Collinson accuses the authorities of “incompetence”
and claims Harry should never have been placed in such a dangerous position.
Alex Watson, the leader of Derwentside District Council at the time, admits the tragedy could have been prevented, while an internal inquiry by Durham Police revealed procedural flaws that have subsequently been addressed.
The hope is that lessons have been learnt that will prevent a similar scenario unfolding in the future.
Emotions often run high when planning disputes come to a head, and when a character such as Dryden is involved, with a long-standing interest in firearms and a stated determination to defend his property to the end, the situation clearly demands a degree of professional expertise beyond the scope of a planning officer.
However, it is also worth noting that nothing has happened since to suggest Dryden’s actions are likely to be mirrored at any stage in the future.
Sometimes, all the safeguards in the world are insufficient to prevent an event so shocking and out-of-theordinary that it still seems incredible two decades on.
Looking back now, it is hard to view Harry Collinson’s death as anything other than the tragic result of an eccentric gunman willing to operate way beyond the limits of the law.
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