Good afternoon and welcome to our coverage om Liverpool Crown Court.

The two-day sentencing hearing for a former Royal Marine who admitted driving into crowds at Liverpool’s Premier League victory parade will get under way today.

Paul Doyle, 54, was due to go on trial at Liverpool Crown Court over the incident on 26 May, when more than a million fans were gathered in the city centre to celebrate the football team’s title success.

More than 100 people were injured, including eight children, one as young as six months, when his Ford Galaxy car struck pedestrians on Dale Street and Water Street in the city.

He had previously denied 31 charges, but sobbed in the dock, with his voice barely audible at times, as he dramatically changed his pleas to guilty last month.

Doyle admitted to dangerous driving, affray, 17 charges of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm (GBH), nine counts of causing GBH with intent and three counts of wounding with intent.

Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC remanded Doyle in custody ahead of a two-day sentencing hearing from 15 December, telling him a long prison sentence is “inevitable”.

What happened on 26 May?

On 26 May, about a million fans had packed Liverpool’s city centre to celebrate Liverpool FC’s 20th English league title win and watch an open-top bus parade featuring the team and its staff along with the trophy.

As the parade ended just after 6pm, the crowd was leaving the waterfront when a car drove into a group of fans on Water Street.

More than 130 people, including eight children, were injured.

Paul Doyle, 54, from Croxteth in Liverpool, was arrested on the same day.  He is a former Royal Marine and a father of three. 

Doyle was charged with 31 offences, and initially pleaded not guilty to all of them in September before dramatically changing his plea to guilty in court last month.

The charges relate to 29 victims, aged between six months and 77 years old, including eight who were children at the time.

The parents of the youngest victim, Teddy Eveson, later told the media he was thrown about 15 feet down the road in his pram when the crash happened.

Another victim, Rob Darke, who was left with a “life-changing” injury after attending the parade with his two sons, told Sky News he thought it was a terrorist attack.

“There was people lying about all over the place. It was like a bomb had gone off… it was carnage everywhere… people crying and screaming,” he said.

“I thought it was terrorists. That’s the first thing that came into my head. Who else would do a thing like that?”

What we expect to hear in court today

After Paul Doyle changed his pleas last month, Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC remanded him in custody.

He warned him that a long prison sentence is “inevitable” ahead of his two-day sentencing, which gets under way at Liverpool Crown Court today.

We’re expecting to hear victim impact statements for the first time and we could perhaps get an understanding of Doyle’s motive.

That will come before the judge’s sentencing remarks, which are due to be heard in court tomorrow.

‘This was not a momentary lapse – it was a choice’: Prosecutor says Doyle ‘turned celebration into mayhem’

Sarah Hammond, chief crown prosecutor for CPS Mersey-Cheshire, said after Doyle pleaded guilty last month that his actions had caused “unimaginable harm during what should have been a day of celebration for the city of Liverpool”.

She added: 

“Paul Doyle has been held responsible for his deliberate actions that endangered lives and brought chaos upon a community.

“A total of 134 people were injured, including children as young as six months. This attack did not just harm individuals – it struck at the heart of a city united in joy, leaving fear in its wake.

“By entering guilty pleas, Doyle has finally accepted that he intentionally drove into crowds of innocent people during Liverpool FC’s victory parade.”

Hammond said dashcam footage was crucial evidence for prosecutors.

“Dashcam footage from Doyle’s vehicle shows that as he approached Dale Street and Water Street, he became increasingly agitated by the crowds. 

“Rather than wait for them to pass, he deliberately drove at them, forcing his way through,” she said.

She added of Doyle: 

“Driving a vehicle into a crowd is an act of calculated violence. 

“This was not a momentary lapse by Paul Doyle – it was a choice he made that day and it turned celebration into mayhem.”

Hammond also praised the bravery of emergency services, whose “actions saved lives”.