Paul Doyle, 54, was traveling to the city center to pick up friends on May 26 when he “lost his cool” and drove his Ford Galaxy straight into supporters heading home from Premier League title celebrations.
Dashcam footage from the vehicle, played in court, showed the shocking moments when fans were thrown onto the bonnet of the car or fell under it as it drove along Water Street, which was closed to traffic, at around 6pm.
Doyle, who could be heard on the footage swearing at supporters and shouting for them to ‘move’, had initially denied 31 offenses he was accused of.
But last month, just before the prosecutor was set to open his trial, he changed his pleas to admit all charges.
The former Royal Marine cried as he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, affray, 17 charges of attempted grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent, nine charges of GBH with intent and three charges of wounding with intent.
The 29 victims named in the indictment ranged in age from 6-month-old Teddy Eveson, whose stroller was thrown into the air in the crash, and 77-year-old Susan Passey.
Judge Andrew Menary KC told the defendant he acted in an “inexplicable and undiluted rage” when he charged into the crowd.
He told Doyle: ‘It is almost impossible to understand how any right-thinking person could act as you do.
“To drive a vehicle into a crowd of pedestrians with such tenacity and disregard for human life defies common understanding.”
The judge added: “Your actions caused horror and devastation on a scale this court has never seen before.”
Doyle had traveled from his home in Croxteth, Liverpool, to the city center to pick up friends who had been at the parade.
During his drive into town he passed other vehicles and ran a red light.
Footage showed the father-of-three driving down Dale Street and not appearing to slow down despite Liverpool fans filling the roads.
His dashcam footage showed him saying “f****** pricks” as people pulled their children aside to stop him hitting them.
When he reached a line of cars turning right away from Water Street, which was closed to traffic, he stopped before swerving into the crowd filling the left lane.
People could be seen on the hood of his car and falling underneath as Doyle drove into the street.
His car only came to a stop when fan Dan Barr climbed into the backseat of the automated vehicle and held the gear lever in park mode.
Doyle, who had been convicted of violence in the 1990s, continued to try to accelerate, but the car, in which people were trapped at the time, could not continue.
During an interview he said he saw someone with a knife and drove in panic fearing he would be attacked, but police found no CCTV or witness evidence that anyone in the area had a knife.
No defects were found on the car and Doyle was not under the influence of drink or drugs.
James Allison, of Crown Prosecution Service Mersey-Cheshire, said: “Why did he do it? I think the simple answer is he lost his cool. He became enraged.”
“He just wanted to go down that path, and by trying to go down that path, those next few minutes probably ruined a lot of people’s lives.”
Chief Inspector John Fitzgerald said: ‘Doyle’s complete disregard for the safety of others – especially the many young children present on Dale Street and Water Street that day – defies comprehension.
“It is pure luck that no lives were lost.”
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