Michael David Slack jailed for five years for manslaughter of father-of-two Martin Leffler

Feb 11 2010 by Laurie Stocks-Moore, Chester Chronicle

A KILLER has been jailed for five years for the manslaughter of dad-of-two Martin Leffler.

The family of Mr Leffler looked on in Chester Crown Court on Wednesday as Michael David Slack, 23, was sentenced to five years in prison for striking a fatal blow to his victim outside the Olde Red Lion pub, Little Sutton on December 27, 2008. It was Mr Leffler’s 48th birthday.

He died on February 13 last year from a brain haemorrhage caused by a blunt impact to the head, caused by either Slack’s fist or the pavement. He had eight brain operations at Walton hospital in Liverpool while fighting for his life in a coma.

Mr Leffler’s daughters Hannah, 18, and Aimee, 16, wore Liverpool football shirts to court with “Daddy’s girl” written on the back, in tribute to their reds fan father.

Hannah said: “We’re relieved we can move on and just focus on our dad now.

“He was the best. He was a mate as well as a dad – he was everything.”

Hannah said she was pleased with the sentence.

“Nothing will ever be enough but I’m happy with it,” she added.

Martin’s brother Andrew Leffler added: “No sentence will ever be long enough. It’s absolutely destroyed my life.

“He’s taken the last of my blood relatives away from me.”

Prosecutor Wynn Lloyd-Jones told the court Slack, of Tennyson Road, Whitby, had been falsely accused on the night of involvement in an earlier fight.

He added: “Mr Leffler said words to the effect of ‘that was a bit out of order’ to the defendant.

“The defendant stopped, turned and punched Martin Leffler in the face. He went straight down.”

Speaking of the family sat at the back of the court, Mr Lloyd-Jones added: “There’s a huge void in their lives, with hopes and aspirations for the future dashed.”

Slack, who had been drinking since lunchtime, was then himself attacked and knocked briefly unconscious in what was described in court as “street justice”.

It emerged in court that less than one month before punching Mr Leffler, Slack had been cautioned by police for an almost identical incident.

Mr Lloyd-Jones said that on November 30, 2008, he received a caution for punching a man to the ground.

When the defending solicitor offered the fact that he was only cautioned as a mitigating factor, The recorder of Chester Judge Elgan Edwards was dismissive.

He said: “The idea of a caution is to deter you from doing it again. It didn’t deter him from doing it again – he did exactly the same thing within a month.

“Maybe he should have been put before a court but he wasn’t – he was told he should behave himself.”

Sentencing Slack, judge Edwards told him: “His life was taken from him as a direct result of the blow that you landed.

“All he was doing was standing outside a public house smoking. He made an innocent comment and for that innocent comment you hit him with some force causing him to fall to the ground.”

“The relatives have lost a loved family man. Nothing I do in sentencing you can ever bring him back.

“I offer my sincere condolences to the family of Martin James Leffler who did not deserve to die in this way.”