Pair are jailed for killing man in row over television

TWO “DANGEROUS” offenders have been jailed for killing a Honley man who was knifed to death following a row over a television at a flat in Halifax.

Former stonemason and builder Darren Moorhouse, 49, had been visiting his friend at her home in Athol Close, Ovenden, in January when her ex-partner, Christopher Churchill, turned up to collect his belongings.

A murder trial jury heard how Mr Moorhouse intervened in a fight between the former lovers, but ended up being stabbed in the heart by Churchill’s friend, Dale Dwyer, as the violence spilled into the entrance area of the flats.

Churchill, 34, formerly of Athol Close, and Dwyer, 26, of Alma Street, Buxton, were both found not guilty of murder but convicted on an alternative charge of manslaughter after a two-week retrial at Bradford Crown Court.

Dwyer, who took the knife from Churchill during the disturbance, claimed that he had lashed out in self defence when he was under attack from Mr Moorhouse.

After the jury returned their guilty verdicts, it was revealed that both defendants had been assessed as “dangerous” offenders in relation to previous crimes.

Dwyer was sent to a young offender institution for four years in 2006 for raping two young girls, while Churchill was jailed for five years in 2008 for offences of robbery and inflicting grievous bodily harm. The court heard that Dwyer had also attacked a former partner, holding a machete to her neck.

The Recorder of Bradford, Judge Jonathan Durham Hall QC, yesterday jailed Dwyer for 15 years with an extended licence period of five years.

Churchill, who had kicked Mr Moorhouse in the head as he lay dying after the stabbing, was sent to prison for 16 years with a fiveyear licence extension.

Mr Moorhouse’s mother, Jean, said in a victim impact statement: “Darren’s life was cruelly taken away. All he wanted to do was help others which he was doing that day but he should never have paid for it with his life.

“If I could bring him back tomorrow, I would. I miss him so much. He’s in my heart forever.”

The extended sentences mean both men must serve two thirds of their prison terms before any review of their safety for release.