This is Leicestershire -- A teenager who killed a homeless man by punching him to the ground, causing a severe head injury, has been jailed for three years and four months. The unprovoked attack by Steffan Christian Linnett (19) happened in front of shocked city centre shoppers on a busy Saturday afternoon. Linnett admitted the manslaughter of 40-year-old Simon Close, who died from brain damage after banging his head on the ground. The defendant delivered a powerful haymaker blow, which floored Mr Close in East Gates, near Leicester's Clock Tower, on May 18 last year. Tina Dempster, prosecuting, told the city's crown court: "Witnesses described hearing a thud and he lay there unconscious, not moving. "Linnett then took up a boxing stance, jumping about. "Then, quickly realising the victim was completely unconscious, he ran off." Judge Michael Pert QC said, after viewing CCTV footage of the incident, said: "There were a group of youths making fun, not in a malicious way, of an amiable drunk. "He was doing you no harm. "It was in a busy shopping street and you and friends were passing a football to each other. He tried to engage, in a good natured way, in passing the ball and obviously wasn't up to it. "One of your friends bounced the ball off his head and you got the ball and threw it back to your friend. "You could have taken any one of a number of choices but you chose to step towards him with a haymaker punch. "It caused a fracture to the right side of his face, taking a big man off his feet, and he struck his head sustaining an injury that was to kill him. "I accept you had no intention to cause really serious harm." Linnett, of Braunstone Avenue, Braunstone, was arrested nearby and claimed he was acting in self-defence. In a later police interview, he admitted over-reacting and hitting out pre-emptively because he felt "scared". Judge Pert said manslaughter was "very different to murder", in that the former was not accompanied by any intention to kill or do serious harm. However, he added: "Although [Linnett] didn't intend it, he must have known the possibility - that's always a possibility when there's gratuitous public violence - there's a chance of a fatality." The court heard that Mr Close, an alcoholic, regained consciousness and paramedics took him to Leicester Royal Infirmary. He was treated for his facial injury and did not appear seriously ill. He discharged himself from hospital later that evening, having been given an out-patient appointment. He returned at midnight asking for a bed for the night, but was sent away. However, emergency services were called at 1.30am after Mr Close collapsed in the hospital grounds. He never regained consciousness, and died later that day. It was accepted by the prosecution and the defence that although the doctors did not initially diagnose a fatal brain injury, medical intervention at an earlier stage would not have saved Mr Close's life. Steven Newcombe, mitigating, said of Linnett: "He was 18 at the time and is shocked to the core by these proceedings. "It happened in a split second and came out of the blue. "The pre-sentence report suggests it was a show of bravado to his friends. "It wasn't self-defence and it shouldn't have happened. "He now has to live with the knowledge his behaviour has killed someone. He's shown great remorse." The public gallery was packed with Linnett's family and friends who attended the hearing to support him.
Reported by This is 8 hours ago.
This is Leicestershire -- A teenager who killed a homeless man by punching him to the ground, causing a severe head injury, has been jailed for three years and four months. The unprovoked attack by Steffan Christian Linnett (19) happened in front of shocked city centre shoppers on a busy Saturday afternoon. Linnett admitted the manslaughter of 40-year-old Simon Close, who died from brain damage after banging his head on the ground. The defendant delivered a powerful haymaker blow, which floored Mr Close in East Gates, near Leicester's Clock Tower, on May 18 last year. Tina Dempster, prosecuting, told the city's crown court: "Witnesses described hearing a thud and he lay there unconscious, not moving. "Linnett then took up a boxing stance, jumping about. "Then, quickly realising the victim was completely unconscious, he ran off." Judge Michael Pert QC said, after viewing CCTV footage of the incident, said: "There were a group of youths making fun, not in a malicious way, of an amiable drunk. "He was doing you no harm. "It was in a busy shopping street and you and friends were passing a football to each other. He tried to engage, in a good natured way, in passing the ball and obviously wasn't up to it. "One of your friends bounced the ball off his head and you got the ball and threw it back to your friend. "You could have taken any one of a number of choices but you chose to step towards him with a haymaker punch. "It caused a fracture to the right side of his face, taking a big man off his feet, and he struck his head sustaining an injury that was to kill him. "I accept you had no intention to cause really serious harm." Linnett, of Braunstone Avenue, Braunstone, was arrested nearby and claimed he was acting in self-defence. In a later police interview, he admitted over-reacting and hitting out pre-emptively because he felt "scared". Judge Pert said manslaughter was "very different to murder", in that the former was not accompanied by any intention to kill or do serious harm. However, he added: "Although [Linnett] didn't intend it, he must have known the possibility - that's always a possibility when there's gratuitous public violence - there's a chance of a fatality." The court heard that Mr Close, an alcoholic, regained consciousness and paramedics took him to Leicester Royal Infirmary. He was treated for his facial injury and did not appear seriously ill. He discharged himself from hospital later that evening, having been given an out-patient appointment. He returned at midnight asking for a bed for the night, but was sent away. However, emergency services were called at 1.30am after Mr Close collapsed in the hospital grounds. He never regained consciousness, and died later that day. It was accepted by the prosecution and the defence that although the doctors did not initially diagnose a fatal brain injury, medical intervention at an earlier stage would not have saved Mr Close's life. Steven Newcombe, mitigating, said of Linnett: "He was 18 at the time and is shocked to the core by these proceedings. "It happened in a split second and came out of the blue. "The pre-sentence report suggests it was a show of bravado to his friends. "It wasn't self-defence and it shouldn't have happened. "He now has to live with the knowledge his behaviour has killed someone. He's shown great remorse." The public gallery was packed with Linnett's family and friends who attended the hearing to support him.
Reported by This is 8 hours ago.