APPEAL judges have quashed a man’s rape convictions after ruling that Scotland’s most senior judge misdirected the jury at his trial.


Alan Clark, 40, was jailed for eight years  at the High Court in Edinburgh in October 2014 for sexually abusing two women and assaulting two others, in Clydebank, Dumbarton and Glasgow.


However, lawyers acting for Clark went to the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh to argue that their client had suffered a miscarriage of justice.


They argued that Lord Carloway, the judge at Clark’s trial, misdirected the jury when he was instructing them in what they had to do before returning a verdict.


Clark’s legal team argued that Lord Carloway committed an error in his summing up and that the two rape convictions had to be quashed.


On Monday, appeal judges Lord Eassie, Lady Smith and Lady Clark of Calton ruled that Clark had suffered a miscarriage of justice.


In a written judgement issued at the court, the judges ordered Clark’s convictions to be quashed.


Lord Eassie wrote: “In these circumstances we have come to the conclusion that the jury were misdirected on a matter which was central to the position of the defence at trial and that we are unable to say that no miscarriage of justice may have occurred.


“We shall therefore allow the appeal against conviction.”


Clark was convicted following trial at the High Court in Glasgow. Sentence had been deferred to Edinburgh for the court to obtain reports. 


During proceedings, the court heard how Clark abused the women in Glasgow, Clydebank and Dumbarton between 2001 and 2012.


The court heard how he raped one woman who helped him develop his literacy skills.


He was described as being “charming and pleasant” at first but later abused the woman who was pushed, slapped gouged and then handcuffed.


On one occasion he tried to strangle her after she turned off a TV.


After being raped the woman said she felt so “so low” that she believed the attacks would only end when one of them had died.


The court heard how he also raped a second woman in 2008 at a flat in Glasgow. 


During the incident, Clark slashed the woman’s clothes and threatened to petrol bomb her home.


Passing sentence, Lord Carloway – who was appointed Lord President last month – ordered Clark to be supervised by the authorities for four years following his release from custody.


Lord Carloway added: “You have been convicted of a catalogue of sexual and violent offences.”


At his appeal in Edinburgh, lawyers argued that Lord Carloway made a mistake when he delivered his closing instructions to the jury.


They argued that his closing instructions to jurors may have prejudiced the case against their client.


The appeal judges agreed and agreed to allow Clark’s appeal against conviction.


In the judgement, Lord Eassie wrote that he and his fellow judges now wanted to be addressed by lawyers about what Clark’s new sentence should be.


He added: “We require to hear counsel further on the matter of sentence in light of that decision.”