Husband cleared of rage murder

Bradley was cleared of murder at Liverpool Crown Court

A husband has been cleared of beating a man to death with a car steering lock after he threw a missile at his wife's car.

Hotel manager David Bradley, 33, was found not guilty of murdering 41-year-old Bruce Davies by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court.

The jury also found him not guilty of an alternative charge of manslaughter.

Father-of-one Mr Bradley wept with relief when the verdicts were read out, following six-and-a-half hours of deliberation.

David is very relieved at the verdict. He will now attempt to put his own life back on track and in order

David Bradley's solicitor

He had been accused of killing Mr Davies by hitting him in the throat with a baseball bat-shaped steering lock known as The Billy Bat.

It was alleged that he confronted Mr Davies on a golf course in Huyton, Merseyside which runs alongside the M62 motorway.

Mr Bradley's wife, Helen, had been driving along the motorway with the couple's three-year-old son, Ryan, when her windscreen was shattered by an object.

She believed the object had been thrown by a group of three men, including Mr Davies, who she later found standing next to their broken down car on the opposite side of the motorway.

She challenged them about the damage but all three men ran across the motorway and on to the Bowring Park golf course.

Mrs Bradley then phoned her husband, who left his work at a nearby hotel, and drove to the golf course to confront the men.

Mr Davies's friends claimed Mr Bradley had lashed out with the "Billy Bat".

Self defence

But Mr Bradley told the jury that although he had brandished the steering lock, he had never used it as a weapon on the men.

He said he had punched Mr Davies in the head and body, but was acting in self defence.

Mr Bradley's family cheered and wept with joy when the verdicts were read out.

Mr Bradley, a former night club manager and one time licensee of Liverpool's Adelphi Hotel, did not comment outside court after the verdict.

His solicitor Neil Gunn read out a statement in which he thanked the jury and pledged to rebuild his life.

The statement read: "David Bradley is very relieved at the verdict.

"He will now attempt to put his own life back on track and in order."