Emmerdale confirms verdict in Bear trial as dark story ends with major twist
The following article contains spoilers from the episode of Emmerdale dated May 5. It hasn’t aired on ITV1 yet, but can be viewed on ITVX and YouTube.
Bear Wolf’s (Joshua Richards) trial has ended in Emmerdale – and it concluded in a very unexpected way.
Bear, Paddy Kirk (Dominic Brunt) and Dylan Penders (Fred Kettle) took to the stand yesterday to be questioned by two barristers regarding Ray Walters’ (Joe Absolom) murder. Bear was facing the prospect of going to prison for ending Ray’s life, while Paddy and Dylan had been charged for perverting the course of justice.
Last week, a fellow slave called Simo (Steven Gidwaney) told Paddy that he’d testify at the trial in order to try and help Bear. Unfortunately, things took a shocking turn when Simo was questioned, as he told the jury that he believes Bear was given special treatment on the farm and therefore isn’t a victim.
Bear was abused and manipulated just like the other slaves, but due to the fact Ray liked Bear, he often would ensure that he didn’t need to work as much as the other adults. He’d also give him snacks and extra rewards, whereas Simo would face Ray’s wrath and nothing else.
Simo’s comments left Bear’s family horrified. Zara the solicitor told Paddy that putting Bear on the stand could help them a lot – but it was a massive risk.
In the past, whenever Bear’s been questioned about what he’s been through, his anger levels have increased when someone tries to twist the narrative, or struggles to understand what he’s trying to say. If Bear got angry while being questioned by the barristers, it could leave the jury with the view that he did intentionally murder Ray.
Bear did feel the pressure when he was on the stand, but ultimately the healing he’s done in this period meant he didn’t completely lose his temper. After a break, Bear, Paddy and Dylan returned to learn their fates.
The jury foreperson gave two not-guilty verdicts and a guilty one, and we didn’t discover who got the latter until later on in the episode.
Surprisingly, Paddy Kirk was found guilty at the trial. Bear couldn’t help express how unfair he thought that was, noting that he was the person who killed Ray after all.
It was then confirmed that Paddy has been given a 12 month suspended sentence over two years. It means that he’s a free man now like Bear and Dylan – but he just has this hanging over him for a long time.
Today’s episode saw Ray and Celia’s Daniels’ (Jaye Griffiths) reign over the village come to an end after almost a year.