‘Blackburn town centre peacemaker was felled by single punch’

The final moments leading up to the death of Adam Rogers, 24, in Blackburn town centre were today heard in court for the first time.

The defendant, a 17-year-old from Rishton, who denies a charge of manslaughter following Adam's death last July. He cannot be named for legal reasons.

Prosecutor Michael Lavery told the jury during his opening that there was ‘no issue’ over the fact the defendant threw the punch into Adam’s face in the early hours of July 5, which caused his death.

He said the issue was whether the punch was ‘lawful’ and that the defendant will claim he was acting in self-defence.

Mr Lavery said: “Adam Rogers played no part in the build up to this violence, the banter about fighting, nor any part in the fight.

“If anything, the Crown say, you will see him as a peacemaker trying to stop this young man (the defendant) getting involved in the fighting, putting his arm around him and shepherding him away – that’s all he was doing.”

The court, packed with members of Adam’s family and relatives of the defendant, heard that Adam and a group of friends had been out drinking and playing pool as part of a team-building exercise.

They had formed a football team set to start in August and had been in the Bulls Head, Wilpshire, the Brownhill Arms, then into the town centre, ending up at the Live Lounge.

Mr Lavery told the court that Adam, Carl Rutherford and Chris Burke, had left the nightclub around 3am and were sat outside on a bench talking among themselves.

A girl came over and started talking to Mr Rutherford, which was described as the ‘catalyst’ for a chain of events which led to ‘peacemaker’ Adam’s death.

The girl was part of a five-strong group including Jonathan David Seal, then 19, of Cliff Street, Antonio Ruiz-Clough, then 19, of Bridge Street, and the defendant, then 16 years old, all three from Rishton.

At the start of the trial, Seal, now 20, and Clough both admitted charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm for their part in the ensuing fracas.

The jury was told by Mr Lavery that ‘banter’ between Mr Rutherford and the group began when one of them took offence to him talking to the girl.

He said there was a proposition of a fight between Mr Rutherford, but eventually the situation was diffused and the two groups went their separate ways.

Adam’s group went to Caesar’s takeaway to get some food, but left and started to make their way to Godfather’s takeaway.

Mr Lavery told the court that the defendant then approached Mr Rutherford from behind and threw an object at his head, while being ‘egged-on’ by the girls in their group.

Mr Rutherford, turned and ‘perhaps inappropriately’ spat at the defendant, the court heard.

At this point, claim the prosecution, Seal punched Mr Rutherford in the face, bloodying his nose and then hit him again to the body.

Two members of the council’s street cleaning team, David Fielding and Greg Davis, were sat in their vehicle and Mr Lavery said the jury will hear that they saw the defendant ‘in the face’ of Adam and ‘walking towards him as Adam had his arms by his side in a non-aggressive stance’.

Mr Lavery said the employees saw the punch hit Adam in the face “Adam fell backwards on to the floor. He looked unconscious as his arms were not out to break his fall. His head bounced off the floor and hit it again, his legs were rigid and arms by his side, like a felled tree’.

The prosecution claim this blow was ‘unlawful’ as the defendant ‘had no cause or reason to punch him’.

Adam lay motionless, his breathing down to three breaths per minute from an average of 16.

The defendant and his group fled and the ambulance arrived at the scene at 3.41am.

Adam arrived at Royal Blackburn Hospital just before 4am in a deep coma with a laceration and bleeding to his mouth, bruising and a linear fracture to the back of his head.

He had suffered a brain contusion and irreversible brain damage. Adam died on Sunday afternoon.

Mr Lavery told the jury that the defendant attended Greenbank Police Station, Blackburn, with his mother and told police during interview that Adam had threatened him. He claims Adam put an arm around him and said: “I’m going to do you.” This made him feel scared and in panic he swung a punch at Adam’s face, the court heard.

Mr Lavery said the Crown believed the teenager was ‘making it up to explain what he did’.

“The most Adam Rogers did was try to keep him away from the violence, try and calm the situation down and this defendant punched him in the face for no reason.”

During the first day of an expected week-long trial, Carl Rutherford and Christopher Burke were called as prosecution witnesses.

Mr Burke recounted his version of events that night, admitting there had been ‘an exchange of words’, but added: “Adam had not said anything or been involved”.

He said he did not to have seen the punch which felled Adam, but ‘heard a thud’ and saw him go to the floor.

Mark Stuart, defending, said the initial confrontation had been ‘banter between two sides’ and ‘handbags at dawn’. He then suggested Mr Rutherford’s evidence was different from his police statement and that he hadn’t seen Adam fall.

Mr Burke took the stand and told the jury that ‘up to that stage we’d had a really good night’.

Mr Burke choked back tears as he recalled the group planning on going home to ‘Podge’s house’ (Adam’s nickname) after the first argument.

“I know Adam’s calm so I told him to take (Carl Rutherford) him to the bottom of the street to the pizza place.

We had a bit of banter with the take away owner, Podge and Carl walked out and were about 20 yards ahead of me.

I saw the boy trotting over and then throw what looked like a kebab at Carl’s face.

“The boy was still in the proximity and it looked like Carl spat at him.

“The boy was looking for a fight. I cannot see how throwing a kebab in someone’s face is not looking for a fight.”

As Mr Rutherford was hit, Mr Burke told the jury he and Adam each took one of the other group away.

“The next time I saw Adam he was laid in the road.

“Carl had put him in the recovery position. Adam was bleeding from his mouth and head. I took off my shirt and wrapped it round his head.”

Adam was a former pupil at St Bede’s RC High School, St Mary’s College in Blackburn and the University of Cumbria, where he took a degree in coaching and sports performance.

He coached Padiham Ladies’ football team.