He went to his mum's 70th birthday and within hours he was dead
Stephen Bates is accused of murdering 47-year-old Martin O'Donovan by 'deliberately driving straight at him'
A man told police "I know what I've done, I've f***ed up" after killing his girlfriend's brother by running him over with his car. Martin O'Donovan died aged 47 following the incident outside his sister's home on Stonyhurst Road in Woolton in April this year, which came during their mum's 70th birthday party.
Stephen Bates, of Herondale Road in Mossley Hill, went on trial at Liverpool Crown Court today, Tuesday, accused of his murder. The 42-year-old had only met his victim earlier the same day, but is then said to have issued threats to kill him after a drunken punch-up before returning to the scene in his Ford Fiesta and "deliberately driving straight at him".
John Benson KC told a jury of three men and nine women during the prosecution's opening this morning: "Martin O’Donovan, the deceased, was born on the 21st of October 1977. He would have been celebrating his 48th birthday today, had his life not been cut short in April of this year. This sad case is all about the circumstances in which Martin O’Donovan lost his life."
The court heard that Bates attended his girlfriend Susanne Lewzey's home on Stonyhurst Road on the evening of April 18 for her mum's 70th birthday party, with Mr O'Donovan and another sister of his, Natalie O'Donovan, being amongst the other guests. But Mr Benson said: "What started off as a happy family occasion was to end in the catastrophic death of Martin O'Donovan.
"There will be no dispute in this case that Martin O'Donovan's death was caused by the defendant. He has previously admitted the offence of manslaughter. The prosecution say, however, that his guilty plea to manslaughter does not reflect the criminal responsibility of the defendant, Stephen Bates. The prosecution say that Stephen Bates murdered Martin O'Donovan and, at the time that he killed Martin O'Donovan, he intended to kill him, or, at very the least, to cause him really serious harm.
"By all accounts, the atmosphere, initially at least, was jolly, and the family who attended were enjoying themselves and getting on very well. It is clear that guests were drinking, as was the defendant. As the day wore on, the prosecution say that he became progressively more inebriated.
"To begin with, he was what might be described as happy drunk. Although he had never met Martin O'Donovan before, they appeared to be getting on fine. Martin O'Donovan was living in the Midlands at the time, and he had come up for the birthday party.
"The defendant turned into being a nuisance drunk, annoying, obnoxious. Lairy, is one of the words used to describe his behaviour. Clearly the worse for wear, his partner took him into a room within the house, effectively to tell him to take some time out and have a glass of water.
"He appears to have resented that. He did not like the fact that he was being accused of behaving in the way that he clearly was. It was apparent to the other guests. He was, apparently, in drink, unable to recognise how he had been behaving. To have someone behaving in that way can alter the mood of the occasion. It was Susan O'Donovan's special, three score years and 10, birthday party."
This apparently led to a row between the couple, with Bates refusing to take a taxi home in the aftermath and instead insisting that he drive his car home in spite of his drunken state. He was then said to have become "very angry and abusive" when Ms Lewzey attempted to stop him from getting behind the wheel, before he told her: "Get out of my f***ing face."
Having been "frightened by his manner and demeanour", she handed the car keys over to Bates before returning inside and asking Mr O'Donovan to "have an advisory word" with him due to "how well they had been getting on earlier". Mr Benson said of this: "There was an exchange between them. It all seemed calm.
"They moved from outside of the house to the front door, when, suddenly, a fight started between them, a fight that moved into the garden. It was a fight that did not last for very long but, clearly, blows were exchanged. The two men were rolling around on the grass outside.
"Suzanne Lewzey and Natalie O'Donovan intervened to bring to an end this unattractive spectacle, and they succeeded. They were split up. It appears that neither man had any serious injuries from this altercation."
Bates, who wore a white shirt and navy blue tie in the dock and sported short dark hair, was subsequently said to have issued threats towards Mr O'Donovan as he returned inside, calling him a "p***y" and telling his girlfriend that "all her family were c***s". Having then been "still intent on driving his car home", he eventually agreed to Natalie O'Donovan giving him a lift in his own car.
During this 12-minute journey, Bates was described as being "seething" and "furious with Martin O'Donovan for what had happened earlier". Conversations during this time included him apparently "saying he'd kill him" and "get someone to kill him", adding that he "wasn't going to get away with having punched him".
Having directed Ms O'Donovan to drive to Barndale Road, the street next to where he lived, Bates then took hold of the car keys and "sped off" without her. As a result, she phoned her sister "assuming, in light of those threats, that he was going to go back to Stonyhurst Road".
Following this call, Ms Lewzey went back outside to find Mr O'Donovan sitting on the front garden wall of her home before seeing Bates' car approaching. With the return journey having taken him only five minutes to complete, Mr Benson continued: "The defendant was behind the wheel. As it approached the property, it suddenly turned and drove straight at Martin O'Donovan.
"In a vain effort to avoid being struck by the car, Martin O'Donovan got off the wall, jumped up and tried to avoid the collision. But it was too late. The car struck him, and Martin O'Donovan ended up underneath the vehicle.
"The defendant then drove the car forward. Suzanne Lewzey went to the driver's side window. Having seen what had happened, she was understandably very upset, hysterical. She could she her brother lying face down underneath the vehicle. She screamed at the defendant to stop. She used her phone to bang on the car and was shouting that he had run Martin over. The defendant appeared completely unmoved.
"The scene was one of panic and anger. It was clear to medics that he was critically injured. He suffered two cardiac arrests before he was taken hospital. Lifesaving procedures were undertaken. These were futile. He was pronounced life extinct at 4.32am on the 19th of April, at 47 years of age."
Family members appeared to be in tears in the public gallery as Mr Benson said of a subsequent post mortem investigation: "The injuries supported a conclusion that Martin O'Donovan had been run over at least once. The injuries to his skull were extensive. He also suffered extensive chest and abdominal injuries."
Following the incident, Bates was said to have got out of his car before walking "to the other side of the road". One witness heard him remark "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, what have I done?", while, shortly after 11.45pm, he went on to make a 999 call in which he said: "I've just run someone over on Stonyhurst Road. I think they're dead.
"They're not moving. They're not breathing. We had an argument, and I've run him over. You need to send someone quick. I've done the crime. I don't know what we were arguing over, but its my girlfriend's brother."
Police who attended the scene noted that Bates was "extremely intoxicated", while he told officers "I know mate, I'm not going anywhere" as he was handcuffed. Having then been told that he would be required to undergo a breathalyser test, he added: "I know what I've done. I know what I've done is wrong. I've f***ed up."
When interviewed at Belle Vale Police Station the following day, Bates claimed that he "didn't see Martin" and denied having intentionally driven at him. He also told detectives that he had returned to the property as Ms O'Donovan had informed him during the journey back to his address that her sister "wanted to end the relationship", and he was intending to "go back to speak to his partner".
But Mr Benson said: "In short, he would say that this was all a terrible accident. The prosecution do not accept that. The prosecution will invite you to consider various factors that indicate that the defendant returned to Stonyhurst Road in a hurry to enact his revenge for being punched by Martin O'Donovan and, no doubt, being made to look stupid.
"He repeatedly threatened that he would kill Martin O'Donovan. He was there to be seen, and he was a person he would have been looking out for. This was no accident. This was a deliberate manoeuvre, carried out in rage in order to enact the threats that he had made minutes beforehand. The prosecution say that his intentions were clear. The prosecution say, therefore, that Martin O'Donovan's death was no unfortunate accident. It was clearly murder."
Bates, who is represented by Andrew Haslam KC and Nicola Daley, denies murder, having pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter. The trial, before Judge Neil Flewitt KC, continues, and is expected to last for up to three weeks.