Stephen Tompkinson trial: Actor ‘punched drunken man’ and ‘prompted traumatic mind accidents’, courtroom instructed

Actor Stephen Tompkinson slapped and punched a person who was drunk and making noise exterior his residence, leaving him with traumatic mind accidents, a courtroom has heard.

The 57-year-old, finest identified for reveals together with Ballykissangel and DCI Banks, is on trial at Newcastle Crown Court accused of inflicting grievous bodily hurt within the early hours of 30 May 2021.

Tompkinson denies the cost and beforehand instructed police he acted in self-defence.

On the primary day of the trial, prosecutor Michael Bunch instructed the jury that police had been made conscious of an incident when Tompkinson referred to as at about 5.30am to report two drunken males exterior his home in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside.

The actor instructed officers he had taken a bottle of Jagermeister from the pair and needed them “moved on”, the courtroom was instructed.

About half an hour later, emergency companies acquired a name from neighbour Caroline Davidson, who mentioned she watched the incident from her bed room window. She reported that one of many two males, Karl Poole, was mendacity unconscious on the street.

Mrs Davidson later instructed officers she noticed Tompkinson slap Mr Poole along with his proper hand earlier than punching his head along with his left fist. Mr Poole stumbled and fell backwards, hanging his head, she mentioned.

Mr Poole and his buddy Andrew Hall had been ingesting since about midnight and had been strolling again to Mr Hall’s home from the seashore, passing Tompkinson’s residence on the way in which, Mr Bunch instructed the courtroom.

The noise of the 2 males “laughing and carrying on” woke Mrs Davidson, who seemed out of her window to see them mendacity on a path close to Tompkinson’s residence.

“She could see that one, later found to be Mr Poole, had on only his underpants, with a towel lying on the path next to him,” the prosecutor mentioned.

Mrs Davidson went again to mattress however seemed out her window once more when she heard one other voice about 5 minutes later, the courtroom heard. She then noticed the defendant standing on his driveway talking to the 2 males.

“Although she could not hear what her neighbour was saying, Mrs Davidson formed the view, from his hand gestures, that [Tompkinson] was telling the two men to get on their way,” Mr Bunch mentioned.

“It appeared that one of the men said something back and Mrs Davidson saw her neighbour draw back his fist, before apparently thinking better of it and lowering his hand.

“The two males, who had been clearly closely drunk, tried to get to their toes, however Mr Poole might hardly keep upright, and Mr Hall had to assist him preserve his toes.

“The two made their way a short distance before stopping, possibly because the defendant had said something further to them.

“Mrs Davidson watched because the defendant approached the 2 males, who had been wobbling backward and forward. The defendant first slapped Mr Poole along with his proper hand earlier than punching him to the pinnacle along with his left fist.

“Mr Poole stumbled and then fell backwards striking his head on the roadway, where he lay unconscious. Concerned for what she had seen, Mrs Davidson asked her husband to call the ambulance service.”

Tompkinson then used his telephone to report clips of the 2 males, however didn’t contact paramedics himself, the courtroom heard.

Actor claimed he acted in self-defence

Jurors had been instructed that after being taken to hospital, Mr Poole was discovered to have a fractured cranium and important traumatic mind accidents.

Following his arrest, Tompkinson instructed officers he had gone exterior to ask the boys to maneuver away in order to not disturb his associate and her little one, who had been asleep, Mr Bunch mentioned.

He mentioned he acted in self-defence as the boys had change into “aggressive”.

However, the allegation of aggressive behaviour by the 2 males “is simply not supported by any of the evidence in the case”, Mr Bunch claimed.

“The truth is that the defendant’s story is nothing more than a weak attempt by him to deflect blame on to others for what were his wholly unjustified aggressive actions towards Mr Poole,” he added.

Tompkinson rose to fame starring as Father Peter Clifford in Ballykissangel from 1996 to 1998 and likewise appeared within the hit 1996 movie Brassed Off alongside Ewan McGregor and the late Pete Postlethwaite, after his breakthrough function in political satire Drop The Dead Donkey early within the Nineteen Nineties.

He starred as DCI Alan Banks in ITV’s DCI Banks from 2010 to 2016, with different TV credit together with Wild At Heart, Minder, New Tricks and The Bay.

The trial continues.