Tragedy of Ashley Dale's brother revealed in court as heartbroken dad says 'history has repeated itself'

Ashley Dale's devastated dad said 'history has repeated itself' after he told a court how his son was also shot dead in 2005.

Steve Dunne addressed Liverpool Crown Court today before his daughter's killers were jailed for a total of 173 years. Ashley, a 28-year-old council worker, was gunned down in her own home on Leinster Road in Old Swan, Liverpool, in the early hours of August 21 last year.

James Witham, Joseph Peers, Niall Barry and Sean Zeisz were all found guilty of her murder. Witham used a Skorpion submachine gun for the shooting which the court heard part of a plot to kill Lee Harrison, Ashley's boyfriend.

He was jailed for a minimum of 43 years. Barry, 26, who was described by the prosecution as the 'malign presence' behind the killing, was sentenced to a minimum term of 47 years.

Peers, 29, said to be a 'foot soldier' who drove Witham to the scene, was sentenced to at least 41 years and Zeisz, 28, who was accused of organising and encouraging the attack with Barry, was told to serve a minimum of 42 years.

Ahead of the sentencing, a statement read on behalf of Ashley's dad mentioned his heartbreak after losing two children in fatal shootings. In 2015, Ashley's brother, Lewis Dunne, was shot to death aged just 16, the Liverpool Echo reports.

Mr Dunne said: "On Saturday 20th August 2022, I went to bed as normal. I didn’t realise that when I woke up, my life would never be the same again. In the early hours of the morning on Sunday 21st August 2022, I was awoken by an officer from Merseyside Police who, on confirming who I was, told me my daughter, Ashley Dale, was dead.

"I can’t even begin to describe how I felt. I’d instantly been confined to a living nightmare. He then proceeded to tell me that Ashley had been shot. I remember shouting ‘no’ for a long time at the top of my voice; I couldn’t believe it - history had repeated itself.”

"My son, Lewis Dunne, had been shot dead seven years previous at only 16 years of age. He was shot at close range in the back with a shotgun in a case of mistaken identity; an innocent victim caught in the middle of a gang feud. It had been a long seven years of pulling myself out of some very dark – and at times, lonely – places, trying to put my life back together.

"In 2022, I was expecting the arrival of my first grandson, and life seemed to be pretty positive again. It had taken a lot to get to where I was after the murder of my son, and I’d instantly been put back to day one by the actions of another. Ashley is the oldest of my three children, Lewis the youngest – both are now deceased."

Three were found guilty of the murder Lewis' murder after he was shot in the back at close range in a case of mistaken identity as his attackers sought revenge against a rival gang. Drug dealers Jake Culshaw, 26, and brothers John and Paul Martin, aged 20 and 26, armed themselves the loaded weapon and shot Lewis as he walked into their path alongside the Leeds and Liverpool canal on the evening of November 15, 2015.

Liverpool Crown Court heard previously heard that Lewis was not involved in any of the previous incidents and was simply on his way to a local shop and "in the wrong place at the wrong time".

Ashley's mum's heartbreaking statement

Before the sentencing, Julie Dale read a heartbreaking statement as the defendants watched on. During one part of her victim statement, Witham left the dock, the Echo reports.

She said since her daughter's death, 'time has stood still' and she described the past year as 'unbearable'.

She said: "03:45 on the 21st August 2022. The day I not only lost my daughter, but my best friend. The night we got that dreaded knock that no parent or family should ever have to get.

“Two police officers stood at my door, an image that will haunt me forever. I remember walking down the stairs, saying to Bobby (her partner) “I’m scared”, I know what this means. “Can we come in?”, they said. Never did I think they would say these words. ‘She’s passed away’ they said.

“My life might as well have ended there too. Those three little words had just turned my lights out forever. Time has since stood still.

“How? Why? What’s happened? Are you sure it’s Ashley? All those questions running round my mind. Our lives had just been turned upside down in the blink of an eye. She can’t be, we only spoke a few hours ago and she was fine.

“There’s been an incident at the property, Ashley’s home. She has been shot” they said. Shaking, I fell to the floor.

“The police officers left, leaving carnage behind. Myself and Bobby in total shock and disbelief. Ashley’s two younger sisters were sleeping peacefully in their beds upstairs. Then the reality set in, that I was going to have to tell them, that their big sister they so adored was no longer here."

Ms Dale described how her daughter's 'screamed' when she told them their big sister had passed away. She went on: "Ashley’s only crime, that she fell in love with the wrong person.

"A person who could not keep her safe in life or offer any help or show any compassion to me or my family but continue to lie and make up reasons. None of which included him.

"At 45 I’d lost my daughter, my life has changed forever. I’ve been forced to leave my job as a midwife, which I have done for the past 20 years. A career I’d worked so hard for, to better mine and Ashley’s lives, defeating the odds by going to university and getting a degree after being wrote off as a young mum.

"The sense of loss after not being unemployed since the age of 16, and the financial hardship and worry this has brought. I hate that I won’t see her get married, have children and deliver her babies, become Nanny Julie or grow old together like we always joked about. Often being mistaken for sisters as we were only 16 years apart.

"Trying to fill that void, as we spoke every day sharing everything. Getting into my car and calling her, even if she never answered, that I will never get used to. We don’t get to spend another Christmas with her, harassing me to put her tree up. Walking in on Christmas Day looking like a supermodel, asking “when’s dinner ready?” and I look like I’ve been dragged through a hedge sweating over the stove.

"We should be celebrating her 30th birthday this year, a milestone we all so looked forward to celebrating, and have that trip to New York, like we did for her 18th.

"I don’t like leaving the house any more, socialising with friends, having my photo taken, going the gym and doing all the things we once enjoyed as a family - I am a different mum, friend and partner now."

Directly addressing her daughter's killers in the dock, Ms Dale said: "I hope you all understand, that I will never ever forgive you, for the life sentence you have gave to me and my family."

Ashley’s dad, Steven Dunne, said he had been 'confined to a living nightmare'. He told the court how his son had been shot dead seven years previous at only 16 years of age.

“I can’t even begin to describe how I felt. I’d instantly been confined to a living nightmare. He then proceeded to tell me that Ashley had been shot", Mr Dunne said. "I remember shouting ‘no’ for a long time at the top of my voice; I couldn’t believe it - history had repeated itself."

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