A father and son have been given life sentences and ordered to serve a minimum total of 31 years behind bars for murdering a great-grandfather.
John Taylor, 57, and his son Daniel Taylor, 30, killed Barry Tyrie in 'an incredibly shocking and senseless attack' outside The Trades Club on Regent Street in Haslingden, Lancashire.
Mr Tyrie, 69, was attacked after intervening when John Taylor 'got in the face' of his ex-partner Lizzie Bodycomb during an argument.
He was trying to protect her, Preston Crown Court heard.
The court was told how Daniel Taylor punched Mr Tyrie 'like a cage fighter' to the head before John Taylor repeatedly kicked him.
Prosecutors said it was a 'brief but brutal joint attack' and that Mr Tyrie was 'dead by the time he got to hospital' one hour later.
They said Mr Tyrie's injures were 'typical of repeated blows from punches, kicks or stamps' and that much of the attack happened with Mr Tyrie unconscious on the floor and in 'no position to defend himself'.
He given CPR by people at the scene and then taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital but did not regain consciousness.
The defendants had been drinking in several bars during the evening before they went to the Regent Street club, where John Taylor was seen arguing aggressively outside with Lizzie Bodycomb.
Others intervened and the defendants left but a short time later the pair returned to the club where the argument continued on the street outside.
Judge Mark Brown said Mr Tyrie was a 'popular character' and 'never stood a chance'.
He sentenced both defendants to life in prison.
John Taylor will serve a minimum of 16 years behind bars and Daniel Taylor will serve a minimum of 15 years before they can be considered for release.
Sentencing, he said: “There is no doubt in my mind John Taylor you were determined to get your own back and Daniel Taylor you were willing to return to the pub with him because you saw yourself as ‘Team Taylor’ and ready to settle the score.
"John Taylor the footage shows that soon after you got back to the pub were were in Lizzie Bodycomb's face again.
"When you stepped back away from her Barry Tyrie intervened to try and protect her. All he did was to say you shouldn’t be treating a woman that way.
“And yet within moments he was defenceless on the ground when you were carrying out a joint attack on him.
“Daniel Taylor, you were punching him to the head like a cage fighter and John Taylor after you got to your feet you were kicking him repeatedly.
“It was a severe beating and the multiple bruising to the head, face, arms and body show that he received many blows and kicks.
“He suffered a ruptured blood vessel in the neck and died very quickly at the scene. He never stood a chance.”
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Judge Brown said he accepted the attack was not premeditated and there was no intention to Kill Mr Tyrie.
Daniel Taylor’s defence barrister John Jones said he did not seek a pre-sentence report and knows his client will get a life sentence.
He said he will turn 31 years old next week, has a partner and two young children.
The court was told that before the offence Daniel Taylor had a ‘secure, steady and responsible occupation at a carpet factory in Burnley’.
Mr Jones said: “The violence, when it did occur of this extreme nature, was spontaneous.
“The ‘going back to settle a score’ as it has been put was an action led by the co-defendant.”
John Taylor’s defence barrister Francis Fitzgibbon said his client had worked for 14 years as a mental health support worker in care homes.
He said it was ‘valuable and important work for the community’ and that his violent actions on August 25 last year were a ‘gross aberration’
Mr Fitzgibbon said he disagreed that John Taylor’s return to the pub was ‘settled a score’.
He said the violence arose ‘spontaneously’ and that Barry Tyrie had not been involved in the first incident.
'We are pleased with this conviction and feel that justice has been served'
In a statement issued after the sentencing hearing, Barry Tyrie's daughter Lisa Price said: "My dad was dearly loved by all his family and everyone that knew him.
“We will never get over what happened to him and struggle even more with knowing that two people who were supposed to be his friends were responsible for his death.
“As a family we are pleased with this conviction and feel that justice has been served.
“No sentence can ever bring my dad back but we can at least try and move forward and remember my dad for the kind and loving man he was.”
Detective Chief Inspector Gareth Willis, of Lancashire Police, said: “This was an incredibly shocking and senseless attack on a pensioner, which makes his death all the more tragic.
“Barry was a popular and well-respected member of the local community, and I want to thank everyone who came forward, providing significant assistance to the investigation team, and also the many witnesses who have attended court.
“Their support has helped us bring these two men to justice for Barry.
“Our thoughts remain with his family and friends at this extremely difficult time.”
Senior prosecutor Kerry Grieve, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “John and Daniel Taylor brutally assaulted a man, who they had known for many years, as he stepped in to protect an innocent woman during an argument.
“In no time at all a violent scuffle broke out, they turned on Mr Tyrie and in a joint attack they beat him to death as he lay on the floor unable to defend himself.
“The two men showed no remorse for their actions and claimed they were acting in self-defence. However, we presented a strong case against them at the trial including CCTV, eye witness and medical evidence, which, after carefully considering, the jury concluded they did in fact murder Mr Tyrie.
“My thoughts are very much with the friends and family of Mr Tyrie at the conclusion of this tragic case.”
