A HEROIC former New York police officer, a quadriplegic after being shot on duty in 1986, believes he may have distant relatives in the Dundee area.

Steven McDonald was only 29 when he was shot three times in Central Park by a 15-year-old he had stopped to question. He was left paralysed from the neck down, confined to a wheelchair and reliant upon a respirator for the rest of his life.

Mr McDonald is perhaps better known for publicly forgiving his assailant, Shavod Jones, only six months after the shooting. Since then, he has been talking of the importance of forgiveness, writing books and articles, and travelling the world to spread his message.

Mr McDonald’s wife, Patti Ann, was pregnant when he was shot and she gave birth to their son, Conor, six months later. Steven is now looking to find his distant Scottish relatives after contacting The Courier for help.

He said, “My great-grandfather, William Walker, emigrated to New York in the 1880s and his family were from the Dundee area.”

Mr McDonald has managed to trace back as far as William Walker’s grandfather, also called William Walker. Mr Walker was born in Panbride, Forfarshire—now Angus—in 1803 and his wife, Janet, was born in Monikie, Forfarshire, the same year.

Mr McDonald added, “William and Janet may have had seven or more children, all of whom were born in Dundee between 1826 and 1939. In the 1851 Scottish census, William, a carver, and his family were listed as living at 36 Bucklemaker Wynd, Dundee.

Bucklemaker Wynd was swept away some time after the Dundee Police and Improvement Act of 1871, to allow for the widening of Victoria Road.

“The couple’s son, David Walker, was born in 1830 and, according to the 1881 UK census, he moved to England and became the superintendent instructor of engineering at King’s College, London. He was married to a woman named Emma and they had seven sons, one of whom was named William.”

By 1890, David Walker had remarried to a Scottish woman named Annie Mackie and, at the age of 61, became the father of daughter Catherine.

Mr McDonald added, “In the 1901 census, David and Annie were living with their daughter on Wilberforce Road. At least one of David’s sons, William, my great-grandfather, emigrated to New York in the mid-1880s. If anyone can provide me with information on this Walker family, I would be very happy to hear from them.”

Mr McDonald can be contacted on gallfour @optonline.net or at 20 Michel Court, Malverne, NY 11565, USA.