Court Hears How Nottingham Dad - Involved In A Car Crash - Was Three Times Over The Limit Before Alleged Attack On His Doorstep

23 April 2019, 17:33 | Updated: 23 April 2019, 17:34

A father-of-two from Nottingham - who died after allegedly being confronted on his doorstep by a driver angry at a minor collision - had drunk up to 10 pints of lager before the crash, a court heard.

Oliver Brown is alleged to have knocked Stephen Walsh to the floor after becoming enraged when his van was "clipped" by the 37-year-old's Lexus on July 29 last year.

Mr Walsh's fiancee, Katie Brown, admitted she was "frustrated" with him after deciding to drive back from a night celebrating his father's birthday and a friend's christening, despite the amount of alcohol he had consumed.

Miss Brown, who said she had drunk five gin and tonics that evening, admitted to jurors she and Mr Walsh had failed to stop after the collision which caused damage to the wing mirror and nearside front of Brown's van.

Nottingham Crown Court was also told how she had found her partner dead the morning after allegedly being punched in the face by the 21-year-old defendant.

A jury panel of six men and six women had previously heard how Brown struck Mr Walsh hard to the face at his home in Mapperley, Nottingham, and the alleged victim had cracked his head on the ground as a result.

Asking questions about what Miss Brown did the following morning, prosecutor Sarah Knight said "did you go and check on him?" to which she replied "yes".

The questioning continued: "Did you find him still in the bedroom?"

"Yes."

"Was he still on the bed?"

"Yes."

As Ms Knight asked her next question - "was he still alive?" - Miss Brown broke down into tears.

She eventually responded: "No, he was dead."

Miss Brown told the court there was blood on Mr Walsh's nose and head, which she assumed had been from a punch to the face.

Describing her version of events on the night of the alleged attack, Miss Brown said: "The front door was wide open and Stephen was lying on the floor with his head facing his car and I just fell to my knees and had my hands on his arm.

"He (Brown) threw his arms back and said 'I thought he was going to hit me, so I hit him'.

"I panicked at this point because I had never seen Stephen unconscious before.

"I just said to him (Brown) 'what have you done, what have you done?'"

Prosecutors allege the small amount of damage on his Vauxhall Astra van had left Brown "pumped up and angry", and he had been "circling" the area after the collision to find the man responsible.

Brown, of Golden Sands Caravan Park, Ingoldmells, Lincolnshire, denies manslaughter.

The defendant's girlfriend, 21-year-old Rosann Newton, of Findern Green, Nottingham, denies assisting an offender after allegedly giving false statements to police and deleting text messages from her mobile.

The trial continues.