Man was killed by car 'deliberately driving straight at him' at mum's 70th birthday party
Martin O'Donovan, 47, died after he arrived at his sister's house to celebrate his mum's birthday - just hours later he would be run over by that same sister's boyfriend
A man went to his mum's 70th birthday and just hours later he was dead.
Martin O'Donovan, 47, died outside his sister's home in Woolton, Merseyside, after he visited for his mum's 70th birthday party. His sister's boyfriend Stephen Bates, of Herondale Road, in Mossley Hill, went on trial at Liverpool Crown Court for the April incident.
The 42-year-old had only met his victim the same day, but is alleged to have issued threats to kill him following a drunken punch-up, before returning to the scene in his Ford Fiesta and "deliberately driving straight at him".
Patrick Benson KC told the jury: "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 Bates attended his girlfriend Susanne Lewzey's home on the evening of April 18 for her mum's 70th birthday party, with Mr O'Donovan and another sister of his, Natalie, being among the other guests, reports the Liverpool Echo. Mr Benson continued: "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 said, 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."
Bates, who wore a white shirt and navy blue tie in the dock, allegedly refused to take a taxi home in the aftermath and insisted that he drive home, despite being in a 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****** face."
During the 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."
Mr Benson said as Bates' approached Martin in the car, he added: "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."
Bates is then alleged to have driven the car forward with Suzanne soon racing to the driver's side window where she screamed at him to stop. She used her phone to bang on the car and was shouting that he had run Martin over.
Martin was pronounced dead at 4:32am on April 19. 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***** up."
Bates pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter but denies murder.
The trial is expected to last up to three weeks.