Dilon Price Jailed Five Years, 11 Months for Harley Fox Manslaughter in Huthwaite Pub

A man has been incarcerated following the death of a father who was attempting to mediate an altercation in a pub beer garden.

Harley Fox, 34, died on 10 June last year after being fatally punched by Dilon Price, 30, at the Market Inn, Huthwaite, Nottinghamshire. Mr Fox had reportedly intervened to stop Price's assault on John Francis.

Nottingham Crown Court heard that Mr Fox married his "childhood sweetheart" in hospital while in a coma, just days before his death.

Price, of Back Lane, Sutton-in-Ashfield, admitted to manslaughter and assault occasioning actual bodily harm on Mr Francis. He was sentenced on Friday.

The court heard Mr Francis was celebrating his wife's birthday and their wedding anniversary when Price, described by witnesses as "aggressive", confronted him. After assaulting Mr Francis inside and then in the beer garden, Mr Fox stepped in, stating, "that was enough." Price then pushed and punched Mr Fox, causing him to hit his head on a picnic table and then the concrete floor. Mr Fox subsequently went into cardiac arrest.

Prosecutor Sarah Knight detailed that Price returned inside the pub before leaving in his van, where witnesses heard him shout, "that's what you get for messing with a traveller boy."

Mr Fox was pronounced deceased on 10 June, with a brain injury from the punch identified as the cause. Ms Knight emphasised that Mr Fox was "trying to act as a peacemaker throughout the entirety of this short-lived incident" and "at no stage did he do anything wrong."

Price initially pleaded not guilty, claiming self-defence, but later changed his plea. Jordan Fox, Mr Fox's widow, read a victim impact statement, describing the event as turning what "should have been the happiest day of our lives into our final goodbye." She criticised Price's delayed plea change as "selfish and cowardly."

Mary Prior KC, defending Price, stated he was a man "with limited intellect [and] limited education" who expressed remorse. Judge Robert Egbuna, in sentencing, hoped Price's remorse was "genuine" but noted the delay in admitting guilt "exacerbated [the] anguish and pain" of Mr Fox's family. "You have robbed a family of a life, and caused untold heartache for them," Judge Egbuna stated.