A man murdered his dad days before his 80th birthday in an unprovoked attack.
David Lavender drank heavily before battering his father with a glass kettle last December and fleeing their Old Swan home. A judge said Anthony Lavender’s death at the hands of his son was “a tragedy beyond words” as he sentenced the 37-year-old to life in prison this morning.
Gordon Cole, QC, prosecuting, said Lavender had been living at his dad’s Woodhall Street home since returning from London during the covid pandemic. He said there was sometimes tension between the two but that there was little to suggest Lavender would be violent towards his dad.
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The court heard Lavender had been drinking heavily on the evening of December 29 before he picked up a glass kettle and hit his father multiple times across the head, causing injuries to his eyebrow and cheek. Anthony Lavender called emergency services to report the attack but when officers arrived he was unconscious on the stairs.
Mr Cole said: “Upon arrival they were unable to hear anything inside the house and got no answer from knocking. Due to the circumstances at the time they entered the property. Both saw Anthony Lavender sat on the bottom of the stairs slumped over and collapsed. Officers found Anthony Lavender to be unresponsive and to be bleeding from the head. There was a pool of blood on the floor and some blood on a white towel nearby to him.”
Police and ambulance services attempted to resuscitate Anthony Lavender but he was declared dead at the scene. An autopsy later concluded the assault had caused him to have a fatal heart attack.
By this point, Lavender had fled the house, speeding away in his black Audi before he crashed it on the Queens Drive flyover a short time later and was taken to Aintree Hospital.
The court heard that while being treated for a neck injury sustained in the crash he asked a police officer: “When am I going to prison?”
Lavender was initially assessed to see if he was mentally fit to plead guilty to murder but finally admitted it last month. Andrew Ford, QC, defending, said that while Lavender’s mental health was poor and he had previously attempted suicide there was no longer a suggestion it had contributed substantially to what he did.
He said Lavender still did not know why he killed his father but accepted responsibility for what he had done and wanted to apologise to his family.
Mr Ford said: “He attributes no blame nor responsibility towards his father, nor does he blame his mental health for what he did. Perhaps most of all, he must live forever, whatever the sentence this court passes, with the fact he killed his dad and I can tell you that will be heavy on him.”
Family members in court to watch Lavender’s sentencing described to the judge how Anthony Lavender’s death had shattered their lives, calling him a “quiet, kind and gentle man”.
Judge Neil Flewitt, QC, said Anthony Lavender’s death in his own home and at the hands of his own son had “shattered the lives of those who knew him”. He said: “It is clear from all I have heard that your father loved you and was proud of you. It is a tragedy beyond words that you are the person who brought his life to an end.”
Lavender, of Woodhall Street, was jailed for life with a minimum of 14 years. His time spent on remand will count towards his sentence.
Speaking after his sentencing, Merseyside Police's Detective Chief Inspector Mark Drew said: “I would like to take this opportunity to pass my condolences to the family and friends of Mr Lavender and hope that this sentence will give them a sense of closure and allow them to grieve the loss of a loved one.
"Tony was a well-loved and very popular member of his community, he was well known for selflessly giving up his own time to help others.
“Domestic abuse is a shocking and reprehensible crime and it is never acceptable, irrespective of who it affects.”
