Martin Greensmith, 37, has been jailed for six years for the manslaughter of his biological father, Steven Shevels, 61, who died after being pushed over in a pub beer garden on Christmas Eve. The incident happened hours after Greensmith learned that Shevels was his father.
Fatal Altercation at Queen's Head Pub
Greensmith was sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court on Friday after being found guilty of manslaughter. The court heard that Greensmith went to the Queen's Head pub in Willington, Co Durham, on December 24 with his family. While there, Shevels, who was drunk, entered the pub and had several exchanges with Greensmith's family. At some point, Greensmith's mother told him for the first time that Shevels was his biological father.
Judge Jonathan Carroll told the defendant: "Mr Shevels said something you objected to. You were immediately angry and aggressive." Later, when both men were in the beer garden, Greensmith approached Shevels and delivered a "powerful and aggressive push" to his upper body, causing him to fall and hit his head on the concrete floor.
Court Rejects Self-Defence Claim
Judge Carroll said: "The jury, rightly in my view, rejected your assertion of self-defence. Mr Shevels ... was presenting absolutely no risk or threat to you."
In a victim impact statement read in court, Shevels' daughter Chloe Shevels described her father as "a quiet and timid man" who loved nature and rock music. She said: "He died on Christmas Eve. I found out through gossip from other people when I was opening presents. I now dread the thought of Christmas."
Family's Grief and Mitigation
Shevels' sister Angela Thompson said he was "the victim of an unprovoked and selfish act of violence, which took his life and took him from us far too soon". She added: "It's bad enough this happened, but for it to have happened on Christmas Eve makes it a lot worse. Christmas is supposed to be a time of happiness and togetherness. Well, that's been taken away from us now."
In mitigation, the court heard Greensmith was "genuinely remorseful" and had experienced "significant emotional distress" and intrusive thoughts since the incident. A pre-sentence report suggested he may have felt "overwhelmed" by the fact that Shevels was his biological father, and that this was the first and only time he had met him, when he was "drunk and unpleasant to his family".
