Trial begins over death of Ian Baynham
The trial of three teenagers accused of attacking a gay man in central London last year has begun.
Ian Baynham, 62, died in hospital on October 13th 2009, several weeks after he was kicked and punched while on a night out near Trafalgar Square.
Joel Alexander, 19, of Thornton Heath, south London, Rachel Burke, 18, of Three Oaks, East Sussex, and Ruby Thomas, 18, of Lichfield, Staffs, all deny manslaughter.
Today, a jury at the Old Bailey heard that Mr Baynham’s death was “like a scene from Clockwork Orange”.
The victim, who was openly gay, was out celebrating a new job with a friend on September 25th when the attack happened.
He allegedly confronted the teenagers after hearing them shouting obscenities at passersby.
The court heard that they screamed homophobic abuse at him before they kicked and and stamped on him.
Mr Baynham, of Beckenham, Kent, had recently won a job at the UK Border Agency after a long period out of work. He had also qualified as a counsellor for AIDS sufferers.
