A woman who was nearly killed while walking her dog by a convicted murderer says she forgives him.
Linda McDonald remembers thinking "this is the day you die and this is the way you die" while she lay bleeding from Robbie McIntosh's attack.
In August 2017, she was battered with a dumbbell as McIntosh was on home leave from prison where he was already serving time for murder.
McIntosh had previously stabbed a woman to death in Dundee when he was just 15.
The murderer, now 36, was sentenced to a minimum of five years for the attack and was also given an Order for Lifelong Restriction which means she may never be released from prison.
On Monday he faces an automatic parole hearing.
Linda, who is now 57, says she's not angry at McIntosh but at how the checks failed to keep her safe.
She told the BBC : "I forgive him, I don't even feel angry at him. I know some of my family and friends feel different.
"I feel angry at the systems that fail to keep the public safe."
Linda told of how she saw her attacker running toward him and she barely had a chance to do anything but put her hand up.
She said: "I knew as soon as he hit me it was serious because of the smell of the blood, it's like pennies and warm. I was just stunned."
She added: "I just started screaming 'help' as loud as I could. When he hit me the second time, I just knew I blacked out."
Two passers-by came to her aid to stop the attack.
At the time of the attack, McIntosh was serving a life sentence for the murder of Anne Nicoll 16 years earlier.
He was about to be considered for parole and was allowed home leave in preparation.
She says the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) has gone back on promises to let her see the report on her attack.
She says she was told it was because of data protection concerns.
Linda says having the information would help her move forward from the attack.
She is now campaigning for more stringent checks on violent offenders before they are considered for release.
She needs 10,000 signatures to take her petition to the Scottish Parliament.
A Scottish Prison Service spokesman told The Mirror: "As we have previously made clear, we are profoundly sorry for what happened to Mrs McDonald.
"We are fully aware of the life-changing consequences, for her and her family, as a result of this dreadful act.
"We have engaged with Mrs McDonald and will continue to do so."
