Kian Bateman, 19, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 17 years for murdering Shelley Davies, 38, by deliberately driving into her outside the 4th Glamorgan Homeguard Club in Caerau, Cardiff, on September 27 last year. Bateman, then 18, struck Ms Davies and her partner David Bratcher, 40, with his Seat Ibiza Sport.
Mother's heartbreaking tribute
In a victim impact statement read at Cardiff Crown Court, Ms Davies's mother Sharon Hillard said: 'Shelley was my sunshine on a rainy day, my pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, she was my beautiful free-spirited girl and the heart and soul of our family.' She described her daughter as a 'diamond' and 'the glue that held every single one of us together.'
Ms Hillard added: 'She was the most unselfish person I have ever known in my life. She didn't ask for much, just made do with what she had.' The court heard that Ms Davies, a reiki healer, had helped 11 people prevent suicide. 'She made me burst with pride,' Ms Hillard said.
Details of the attack
Bateman was captured on video inhaling laughing gas minutes before the attack. The following morning, nitrous oxide canisters were found strewn at the scene, and his abandoned car contained canisters on the passenger seat. Ms Davies suffered multiple fractures to her vertebrae, ribs, arm, and pelvis, along with internal injuries. She underwent emergency surgery but later contracted infections, went into septic shock, and died on October 18.
Family's ongoing pain
Ms Hillard described the impact on the family: 'The devastation reaches the entire family. Her absence is felt in every generation.' She said she relives the moment of the car hitting her daughter 'time and time again.' Concluding, she stated: 'Our fight for justice continues, the fight she began in that hospital bed. Shelley deserves every ounce of that.'
