a murder trial has heard that former aston villa player dalian atkinson died after being tasered threea police officer. the prosecution said that one of the police officers kicked mr atkinson with such force it left imprints on his forehead , mr atkinson had severe health problems and had been behaving erratically. pc benjamin monk denies murder, his colleague pc mary ellen bettley—smith denies assault. sian lloyd reports from birmingham crown court. dalian atkinson had enjoyed a successful career as a professional footballer. later in life he had serious health problems including heart disease and acute renal failure. today a jury heard he died after being tasered three times by a police officer, who went on to kick him twice in the head as he lay on the ground. it's alleged that 42—year—old pc benjamin monk, an officer with 1a years' experience with west mercia police, struck the former footballer with enough force to leave the imprints of the pattern of his bootlaces on the 48—year—old's forehead. he arrived at court with pc ellie bettley—smith who was alleged to have struck dalian

dalian atkinson's brother and sister—in—law were in court today.e pc monk's bright but was resting on dalian atkinson's head. benjamin monk denies murder and manslaughter. pc mary ellen bettley—smith who we was in a relationship with denies assault causing actual bodily harm. they say he was entitled to use force on dalian atkinson because he was attempting to get up and they feared for his safety. the trial is expected to last eight weeks. our top story this evening... life in the uk will start to feel normal again by this summer, says one of the main scientists behind lockdown. police in kent warn people to be vigilant if they head out alone, one week after the body ofjulia james was found in woodland near dover. coming up in sportsday on the bbc news channel, just two weeks after being sacked by tottenham hospital, jose mourinho is named as the new roma manager from the start of next season's serie a in italy. campaigners say they're concerned about the low number of compensation payouts for people caught up in the windrush scandal, two years on

she says that she saw one of the officers and stamping on dalian atkinson�*s head. on that night, saying he was the messiah. earlier today, we had a brief written statement from his late father and atkinson who suddenly died in the intervening five years, in which he told police officers that his son had arrived outside his house in the early hours, had got into the house and held him by the throat, threatening to kill him. both of those police officers denied the charges in the trial is expected to last between six and eight weeks. the headlines on bbc news — french fishing vessels leave jersey and return to port after demonstrating over their post—brexit rights. talks were held earlier between jersey and french fishermen, but it appears no obvious progress was made. the bank of england predicts the uk economy will enjoy its strongest growth since world war ii as lockdown restrictions are lifted. police in essex are continuing to question two teenagers on suspicion of murder after a father—of—four was stabbed to death, having spent the day celebrating his two—year—o

confrontation material atkinson, pc monk twice fired his taser unsuccessfully, the prosecution says that dalian atkinsoncitated. the prosecution alleges that the police then acted beyond reasonable force in that he was kicked in the head by pc monk, they allege that that left an imprint on his forehead and that pc monk beat him with her tongue while he was lying on the ground. the trial is due to last another six weeks and both of those officers denied murder and assault. police have urged people living near aylesham in kent to remain cautious and vigilant following the murder of a community support officer a week ago. detectives say they haven't established a motive forjulia james' death, and have made no arrests. our correspondent simon jones is in aylesham. julia james was working from home last tuesday, she went out to walk her dog when she was attacked. she had suffered head injuries which were very severe. hundreds of officers have been involved in the investigation since, but as yet there is no key suspect and no motive the police have been able to establish. no arrests have been made. the chief

we've been hearing from a few of the witnesses from the cul—de—sac where dalian atkinson's father livedin august 2016 to west mercia police. he could not be here in person because he has subsequently died. he said his son was not behaving in his usual way, arriving in the early hours of the morning and pounding on the door before going in. he told police that dalian atkinson had grabbed him by the throat and threatened to kill him as well as his siblings and even the crown's case against them is that benjamin monk kicked dalian atkinson repeatedly in the head when he was which was unlawful, and that pc bettley—smith beat him with her baton while while he was on the ground. we have heard that she lived directly opposite and she said she saw the late—night incident and although her view was partially obscured, she could see both police officers from the waist up and she witnessed was her stomping on atkinson's head after he had been on the ground. and pc monk had been acting very aggressive in using force against atkinson was on the ground and describe him apparently striking him with an

the prosecution then say that dalian atkinson died as a result of a third deployment of the taser, duringhat the police then acted beyond reasonable force in that he was kicked in the head by pc monk, they allege, and that left an imprint on his forehead and that pc mary ellen bettley—smith beat him whilst he was lying on the ground with a baton. the trial is due to last another six to eight weeks. both of those offices deny charges of murder and assault. the uk and india have agreed new trade and investment deals, worth a £1 billion. the government says the contracts are expected to create more than 6,500 jobs here — mainly in the technology and health sectors. the official number of coronavirus cases in india has now topped 20 million. there's been no let up in the rate of infection, with more than 300,000 positive tests recorded for the 13th consecutive day. there are still reports of oxygen shortages in the capital, delhi, and the army has been asked to set up medical facilities to take the strain off hospitals. devina gupta sent this report. desperate hope. that's what family members

a court has heard that the former aston villa footballer dalian atkinson died after a taser was usede was kicked in the head by a police officer. benjamin monk, a constable with the west mercia force, denies murder and manslaughter. 0ur correspondent phil mackie is following the case at birmingham crown court. yes, and his colleague is also on trial here at birmingham crown court. she denies a charge of assault. today we hear the prosecution outline case against them, it said that in august of 2016, dalian atkinsion was an excellent professional footballer and was suffering from severe health problems 15 years after he retired from the professional game, he had been on dialysis, had heart problems and high blood pressure. he became agitated and was driven in the early hours of the morning to his father's house in telford. there, there was a disturbance which neighbours heard and reported to the police. when those officers arrived, there was a confrontation between dalian atkinsion and the two officers. he was described... his behaviour was described as being erratic and bizarre. he w

a murder trial is told that former aston villa star dalian atkinson died after being tasered three times