A KILLER driver who deliberately reversed over a man outside a pub on Christmas Day has been jailed.
Kirk Marsden, 37, was mowed down outside The Gate Bar and Grill in Blackburn, Lancashire.
Police were called to the scene, on Moorgate Street, at around 4.45pm on December 25, in 2024.
Kirk was rushed to hospital where he tragically died from “catastrophic injuries” the following day.
James Ward, 27, was convicted of manslaughter and causing death whilst driving without insurance after a trial at Preston Crown Court last year.
The court heard a group of people, including Kirk and Ward, were involved in a brawl outside the pub.
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Ward and some friends got into a 4×4 Landcruiser and rammed it towards Kirk – who jumped out the way.
Later, the thug got back into the car and hit his victim before reversing over the beloved father.
Ward fled the scene and drove to a nearby car park with a friend.
However he handed himself in at Greenbank Police Station two days after Kirk passed away.
Appearing at Preston Crown Court on Friday, Judge Graham Knowles KC sentenced Ward to 13 years behind bars.
The defendant was also disqualified from driving for 11 years and 11 months.
In a harrowing impact statement to the court, Kirk’s mum Evelyn recalled the moment her world fell apart.
“The pain is beyond words. I’m broken. My heart is shattered,” she wrote.
“I still can’t come to terms with what happened. Since the day I got the phone call to say Kirk was gone, my world has fallen apart. It’s a living nightmare. I relive it every single day.”
The devastated mother said she is now “terrified” to leave her house and told how “trauma has completely taken over my life”.
“What should be a time of togetherness and happiness is now forever marked by heartbreak,” she continued.
“Kirk was more than just my son, he was my baby boy, the youngest of my children. He used to call me every single day and would visit nearly every other day.
“The bond we had was unbreakable. I still find myself expecting him to knock on my door. The silence now is overwhelming.”
Evelyn described her son as “a devoted father” who “lived for his children”.
Kirk’s heartbroken partner Leanne wrote in her statement: “Our whole lives have been destroyed, we are broken and struggling to cope with day to day living, we have lost our rock, our hero, all we have left are memories.”
She continued: “Christmas will never be the same again, we won’t be able to celebrate like we did; we will always have a constant reminder of how senseless it was in how Kirk was taken from us.”
DCI Bryony Midgley, of our Force Major Investigation Team, added: “James Ward killed Kirk Marsden in a senseless act of violence that has no place on the streets of Lancashire.
“While no sentence can ever make up for a life that has been taken, I hope Kirk’s family take some solace knowing that the man responsible for the death of their loved one is being held accountable for his actions through this significant sentence.”
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