Man accused of driving into crowd at Liverpool victory parade pleads not guilty to 31 offences
A man accused of driving a car into a crowd of people during Liverpool FC's victory parade earlier this year has appeared in court to give his plea.
53-year-old Paul Doyle has been charged with 31 offences related to an incident which occurred on 26 May in Liverpool's city centre where a car was driven into people and 134 were injured.
Doyle is alleged to be the driver of the car and was charged with seven offences shortly after being arrested, with a further 24 added last month during a hearing.
Merseyside Police named him in the days following the incident and he today (4 September) appeared before Liverpool Crown Court to deliver his plea to the charges he is accused of.
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Addressing the court, Doyle pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, with the allegations relating to 29 victims whose ages range between six months old and 77 years old.
Croxteth man Doyle is charged with 18 counts of attempting to cause grievous bodily harm with intent, nine counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent, two counts of wounding with intent, one count of dangerous driving, and one count of affray.
He has a provisional trial date of 24 November, with the case expected to last between three and four weeks.
Liverpool FC's title parade started at 2:30pm on 26 May and moved through the city as thousands of fans lined the streets to cheer on the players and celebrate winning the Premier League.
Fans were reassured that there'd be plenty of time to see the bus go by, but at around 6pm a car was driven into crowds on Water Street and witnesses said they had to 'jump out of the way'.
People at the scene said they heard screams as the car, a Ford Galaxy, collided with the crowds.
The emergency services were quickly on the scene, and at around 7pm, Merseyside Police said a man had been detained at the scene. They believed him to be the driver.
Police described the events as a 'horrific' incident but were not treating it as terrorism.
Doyle appeared before Liverpool Crown Court via videolink from prison as he gave his plea of not guilty to the 31 charges against him.
He would have had a chance to enter his plea sooner had the 24 extra charges not been added to the amount against him, and he will be in court again soon enough for his trial.
Joe Harker