Overview

• The court used Scotland’s Examination of Facts process to establish that John Young, 91, systematically physically and sexually abused boys at Edinburgh Academy between 1966 and 1993.
• Evidence from 24 former pupils and three additional witnesses detailed assaults including genital squeezing, beatings with cricket bats and covert observations during showers.
• Sheriff Iain Nicol ruled that Young will not face criminal penalties after being deemed too ill and infirm to stand trial or mount a defence.
• Survivors welcomed the formal acknowledgment of Young’s offences but lamented that the ruling does not carry a criminal conviction or sentence.
• These findings follow a similar 2024 verdict against former master John Brownlee and feed into a wider public inquiry into historical abuse in Scottish schools and care homes.