The groom who went viral for posting the great debate dress is making headlines once again. This time, though, it's for strangling his wife, and people on social media are not okay.
Keir Johnston first baffled the internet in 2015 when he posted a photo of "the dress," the optical illusion image that had social media arguing over whether the dress was black and blue or white and gold.
The photo became an internet obsession—so much so that Johnston, his wife Grace, and the wedding guest who posted the photo on Tumblr all appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, where they were given $10,000 and a trip to Grenada.
Now, nearly a decade later, the groom has admitted to strangling his wife.
According to court documents obtained by People, Keir was indicted for the March 6, 2022 assault in which he pinned Grace to the ground, repeatedly placed his hands around her neck and threatened to kill her.
Keir reportedly told her:
"Somebody is going to die."
The documents also reported Grace called for help claiming:
“My husband is trying to kill me."
The two appeared at the High Court in Glasgow, Scotland, on Thursday, May 9, where Chris Macintosh, prosecutor for the crown, told judge Lady Drummond that Grace "felt trapped" on the small, remote Scottish Isle of Colonsay.
He added:
“There is no permanent police presence on the island, and she was in a situation where she felt trapped.”
A few days before the attack, Grace attended a job interview on the mainland, against Keir's wishes.
After drinking at a pub quiz, Keir reportedly awoke and said he was going to leave, and she tried to stop him.
Macintosh said:
“She went outside the property to stop him leaving. He followed her and pinned her to the ground. He placed both knees on her arms, so she was unable to move. He then began strangling her with both his hands."
“She was able to scream. She feared for her life and believed Johnston intended to kill her. He was very forceful."
A witness intervened and attempted to pull Keir off of his wife, and Keir went back inside briefly but later reemerged, threatening to "finish" her.
He then began to choke Grace.
The Times stated Keir was holding a knife and was later found hiding under a desk with it. He reportedly held it to his own throat at one point before it was taken from him.
Needless to say, people on social media learning of the assault were shook.
The judge reportedly told Keir:
“I have no need to tell you that this is a serious and violent offense."
"You repeatedly strangled her, injured her and put her life in danger in what must have been absolutely terrifying circumstances for her."
She added:
“I am afraid, Mr Johnston, that your status has now changed, you have been convicted of a very serious crime and you will be remanded meantime.”
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