Dean Dawson's inquest opens

6:30am Sunday 20th July 2008

Comments (0)   Have your say »

AN inquest into the death of a young York father killed in an alleged hit-and-run accident in Wakefield has been opened.

Dean Dawson, 24, had been out socialising with friends in the city centre last weekend when the incident happened, Wakefield Coroner’s court heard on Friday.

The inquest was told he had been seen on CCTV waiting for a taxi in the early hours of Sunday morning outside the Elephant And Castle pub, in Westgate.

Friends said Dean had walked down the road towards the railway station when he was involved in the collision. It was heard the driver failed to stop at the scene.

The hearing was told Dean had been taken to Pinderfields Hospital, where, despite all attempts to resuscitate him, he was pronounced dead at 9.37am.

A 35-year-old man was arrested and bailed the following day. The inquest has been adjourned until the police investigation into his death is completed.

The electrician, of Didsbury Close, in Rawcliffe, York, leaves his long-term partner, Laura Warnock, 22, and their three-year-old son, Alfie.

Tributes have continued to be paid to the popular Hamilton Panthers footballer. In a notice of his death, published in The Press, his mum Chris and dad Geoff said their “darling son Deano” had died “under tragic circumstances, but without suffering” passing “into the arms of granddad Sam and auntie Rebecca”.

They continued: “Behave Dean, you beautiful man, till we meet again, your heartbroken mum and dad.”

A touching message from son Alfie said: “Daddy, I love you lots and miss you. Mummy says you are fixing the stars in the sky.

“I will ask the firemen to get you down on a ladder. Love you, love you, love you more, your baby boy Alfie.”

The funeral of the electrician, who had just set up his own business with a friend after serving his apprenticeship at Poppleton Road firm J Lister, will be held at St Philip and St James’s Church, at Clifton Green, at 10.30am on Thursday.

Friends and family have left almost 200 messages of condolence to Dean on a group dedicated to him on social networking website facebook since it was set up earlier this week.