Liam Naylor, 31, of Fairclough Road in Huyton, was jailed for 35 months at Liverpool Crown Court after ploughing his car into customers at the Queens Arms pub on Father's Day last year. The incident occurred around 5.15pm on June 15, 2025, when Naylor, who was more than double the drink-drive limit, used his vehicle as a weapon following a disagreement inside the pub.
What happened on Father's Day
Naylor was involved in a disagreement with a group of men inside the Queens Arms pub in Huyton. The parties later shook hands, which appeared to resolve things and calmed the atmosphere. However, shortly afterwards, several males gathered around Naylor's car outside the premises. Naylor was heard shouting: 'Who the f*** do you think you're looking at? Do you know who I am?'
Some customers attempted to open Naylor's driver's side door before he drove forwards, reversed, then 'ploughed his car into the small crowd' while 'hanging his head out of the window, appearing to be shouting aggressively'. Mobile phone footage showed a man being run over by the vehicle as a woman shouted: 'You soft c***. You soft c***.' Another male vaulted head first over a set of railings to avoid being struck, dropping his pint of beer.
Victim's injuries and impact
The man hit by the car, John Amore, 61, had been trying to stop Naylor from driving because he was plainly unfit to do so. Mr Amore suffered fractures to both his tibia and fibula, requiring a nine-hour operation and a skin graft from his thigh. He spent nine days in hospital and was unable to work for nine months. In a statement read to the court, he said: 'My recovery is going to take a long time. My leg will never be the way it was before the incident happened. As a result of this small man wanting to fight the world, my life has been altered for the rest of my life.'
He added: 'Father's Day will never be the same for our family again. I wake up sweating, reliving the incident every night. I hope to never have to come into contact with him again.'
Naylor's arrest and previous convictions
Naylor was arrested at his home and found to be unsteady on his feet. He gave an initial breath reading of 84 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, more than double the legal limit of 35 micrograms. He later refused to provide a blood sample, citing a needle phobia. His criminal record shows one previous conviction: a community order for battery and criminal damage in 2015.
Defence and sentencing
Callum Ross, defending, said Naylor is 'full of regret' and that the offence is 'plainly out of character'. He noted that Naylor lives with his partner and two children, aged two and seven, and that the family would lose their breadwinner if he were jailed. Recorder Anna Pope KC said: 'In my view, you used your car as a weapon. During the course of an argument, you had the upper hand because you were in a car which you chose to use. This was a grave injury.' She sentenced Naylor to 35 months in prison and banned him from driving for 47 months, requiring an extended retest before he can drive again.
