Liverpool parade attacker Paul Doyle jailed for 21 years over car rampage. Photo / Getty Images
The Liverpool parade attacker bit a sailor’s ear off in a pub and was thrown out of the Royal Marines following a string of violent incidents, it can be revealed.
Paul Doyle, a 54-year-old father-of-two, racked up a string of convictions in his late teens and early 20s that culminated in him being jailed for a year in 1994.
More than 100 people, ranging from a baby to a 78-year-old woman, were injured when Doyle drove his two-tonne Ford Galaxy into crowds celebrating Liverpool FC’s Premier League title win in May.
Last month, on the eve of his trial, Doyle, from the West Derby area of Merseyside, admitted a total of 31 charges including multiple counts of grievous bodily harm, wounding, affray and dangerous driving.
Jailing him for 21 and a half years, Judge Andrew Menary KC said Doyle had managed to turn his life around following a troubled start to his adult years, making his actions at the parade all the more bewildering.
The judge said Doyle had acted with “inexplicable and undiluted fury”, adding: “It is almost impossible to comprehend how any right-thinking person could act as you did.
“To drive a vehicle into crowds of pedestrians with such persistence and disregard for human life defies ordinary understanding.”
During a sentencing hearing at Liverpool Court Court this week the court was told that Doyle had joined the Royal Engineers in 1989 when he was 18 but was soon convicted of common assault by a military court.
The following year, he appeared before Newport magistrates’ court, where he was found guilty of an offence of dishonesty.
In 1991 he transferred to the Royal Marines and, while still undergoing basic training at the Commando Training Centre in Lympstone, became embroiled in a fight in a nightclub. He appeared at Exeter magistrates’ court, where he was convicted of assault and fined £45.
He was also later punished by a military court following an incident in which he damaged a shop window.
Doyle did not see active service, and despite having signed up for 22 years was discharged by the Royal Marines in January 1993, less than two years after enlisting.
Paul Greaney KC, prosecuting, explained that Doyle had been issued with a Services No Longer Required notice by the Royal Marines.
Doyle remained a reservist, but in July 1993 bit off part of a man’s ear in a drunken fight with a group of sailors. He was charged with grievous bodily harm and was jailed for 12 months after a trial at Preston Crown Court in November 1994.
After his release, Doyle appeared to mend his ways and had no more criminal convictions until May, when he ploughed into crowds in Liverpool city centre.
The horrific events were captured on Doyle’s own dashcam, which recorded him shouting and swearing at pedestrians as he mowed them down.
His car was only brought to a stop when Dan Barr, a former soldier, managed to clamber into the vehicle and put the automatic gearstick into “park” mode.
Addressing Doyle, the judge said: “After a troubling start to your adult life, you did turn your life around. You went to university and have had a successful career. You’re married.
“I’ve read a substantial number of character references written by family members, friends and colleagues. They come from people who have known you for many years ... These people are as bewildered as everyone else with the shocking events of the May 26.”
It is understood Doyle is an Everton fan, but Merseyside Police said that was not believed to have been a factor in his actions.
Instead, it is thought he suffered a complete loss of temper as he drove into Liverpool to collect a neighbour he had earlier dropped off at the parade.
The judge said: “You struck people head-on, knocked others onto the bonnet, drove over limbs, crushed prams and forced those nearby to scatter in terror.
“You ploughed on at speed and over a considerable distance, violently knocking people aside or simply driving over them – person after person after person.
“You accelerated forwards and backwards repeatedly, several victims became trapped beneath the vehicle as you continued to move it – others were thrown into the air or propelled across the ground.”
The court heard statements from 78 of Doyle’s victims over the course of his two-day sentencing. Dozens described suffering nightmares and flashbacks from the day, injuries that caused them to lose work and being left with a fear of crossing roads.
Doyle wept repeatedly as details of injuries were read out as well as the age range of those he had injured. However, one woman said: “Don’t sit in the dock and cry for yourself”, telling him to “take accountability for what you did”.
Mothers spoke of the horror of seeing their children being struck by the vehicle.
The court heard that Susan Passey, 77, spent 27 nights in hospital and was worried that she would not be able to walk unaided again after being pulled under the vehicle.
Another victim, Francesca Massey, 24, had survived the Manchester Arena terror attack and said what happened in Liverpool had “reawakened previous trauma”.
Doyle sobbed again as Simon Csoka KC, his barrister, began his mitigation by saying his client was “deeply sorry”.
Csoka referred to the “paradoxical” nature of the day, which had started with Doyle giving his friend a lift to the parade.
“We can only emphasise the deep sorrow and shame the defendant feels,” he said. “He is remorseful, ashamed and deeply sorry to all those who were hurt or suffered.”
Doyle did not react as the judge passed sentence and suggested that he “perhaps always had issues with temper”.
He was jailed for 21 years and six months, with all charges being dealt with concurrently. He will serve two-thirds in custody before being eligible for release on licence.
He was also banned from driving for three years from any eventual release date and will have to sit an extended driver’s test.
The judge said that despite “many people” thinking he should never drive again, he was considering his chance of rehabilitation.
James Allison, of Crown Prosecution Service Mersey-Cheshire, said: “Why did he do it? I think the simple answer is he lost his temper. He went into a rage.
“He just wanted to get down that road, and in trying to get down that road those next couple of minutes probably devastated a lot of people’s lives.”
Detective Chief Inspector John Fitzgerald, of Merseyside Police, said: “Doyle’s total disregard for the safety of others – particularly the many young children present on Dale Street and Water Street that day – is beyond comprehension. It is sheer luck that no lives were lost.”
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