South Shields teenager Steven Thompson died after being attacked by three people outside nightclub, court hears

Steven Thompson, 19, suffered a fatal brain injury when he fell back and hit his head on the road after trouble flared outside Roxanne's nightclub in South Shields, in the early hours of Bank Holiday Monday, August30, 2021.

Two men have already admitted manslaughter in relation to his death.

Ian Hall, 40, of Revensby Street, South Shields, is now being tried by a jury at Newcastle Crown Court.

Prosecutor Simon Kealey QC told jurors: "The case concerns the death of Mr Thompson outside a nightclub in South Shields in the early hours of a Monday morning during a bank holiday weekend last August.

"His death occurred when he was assaulted in the street by a group of men and fell back and struck his head on the road.

"He sustained a fatal injury to the brain as a result of the blow to the head which caused him to fell and strike his head on the ground."The court heard Leon Wildgoose, 22, of Simonside Hall and Dylan Ford, 23, of Alice Street, both South Shields have pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Hall denies the charge.

Mr Kealey said trouble had started as people left the club when a row broke out over a bike.

The court heard Hall, who had been at nearby Industry nightclub, had received a phone call saying his step son Ford was "involved in fighting or arguing" and so left in a hurry.

Mr Kealey added: "As the disturbance continued this defendant ran and grabbed hold of Mr Thompson, close to a traffic island in the road, before either hitting, punching or headbutting Mr Thompson so that both men ended up on the ground in the middle of the road.

"The other two men, Ford and Wildgoose, joined in the attack.

"As Mr Thomson was getting to his feet he was pursued a short distance in the road before Wildgoose threw a punch at Mr Thompson, connecting with the right side of his face and causing him to fall into the road, motionless.

"The final blow to Mr Thompson was undoubtedly delivered by Wildgoose but the prosecution case is this defendant, as well as the defendant Ford, were part of a joint attack upon Mr Thompson."Hall's aggressive actions towards Mr Thompson not only constituted an assault in itself but also encouraged the other two men to attack him.

"All three were part of an assault, the prosecution say, that all reasonable and sober people would inevitably realise would subject Mr Thompson to at least risk of some harm and which caused his death."

The court heard Mr Thompson was left unconscious and bleeding from his head and emergency treatment was administered at the scene.

He was taken to South Tyneside Hospital, arriving at 4.15am. Doctors continued with emergency care but he was pronounced dead at 5.11am.

A postmortem examination showed he had bruising around his right jawline and a cut to the back of his head.

He had suffered bleeding around the brain and bruising to the brain, which led to it swelling and being deprived of oxygen and blood.

A pathologist concluded his death was a result of blunt force impact, caused by an accelerated fall from standing height from being punched.

Mr Kealey said Mr Thompson did not regain consciousness from the time of the injury until he suffered cardiac arrest.

Hall was arrested at his home the following day, telling police "I just hit him probably, no comment".

He denied knocking anyone to the ground and said he "mostly remembered" the incident.

The trial continues.

Support your Gazette and become a subscriber today.

Enjoy unlimited access to all of our news and sport, see fewer ads, experience faster load times, test your brain with daily puzzles and get access to exclusive newsletters.

Your support for our journalism means we can continue telling South Tyneside’s stories for generations to come. Click here to subscribe - and click here to get a snapshot of the Gazette’s news and sport to your inbox through our email newsletters.