Former tank commander stabbed partner to death for reporting his drink-driving

A former British Army tank commander who brutally murdered his partner in revenge after she reported him for drink-driving has been jailed for life.

Stephen Lawton, 46, stabbed Michelle Egge-Bailey, 54, once in the arm and twice in the neck, severing her jugular vein, on March 11 at the flat the couple shared on Airedale Avenue in Cottingley, Bradford, West Yorkshire. A court heard that Lawton carried out the "brutal killing of a defenceless and vulnerable woman" the day after his arrest.

The ex-soldier left Ms Egge-Bailey to bleed to death overnight in her bed, covering her face with a pillow. At his sentencing on Monday, Lawton was told he must serve a minimum of 17 years before he can be considered for parole.

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Officers discovered Ms Egge-Bailey with serious injuries after responding to reports of concern for a woman’s welfare. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Lawton was arrested and later found guilty of murder at Bradford Crown Court on September 3 after a five-day trial.

The same court heard this week that Lawton's premeditated attack was "the final event of violence" in the pair's toxic five-year relationship. Addressing Lawton, His Honour Judge Jonathan Rose said the attack was "triggered by her engineering your arrest for an offence of driving over the prescribed limit".

"After that arrest you fulminated on what you should do to exact revenge for what she had done and the losses which would flow from your being convicted of that offence," he said. "At a time when you knew her to be incapacitated and vulnerable through drink, and unconscious or asleep, when she would be unable to escape a violent attack or to defend herself against such an attack, you deliberately and with some forethought armed yourself with a kitchen knife and stabbed her repeatedly as she lay in her bed."

Judge Rose added: "There may have been moments of terror before she died as a consequence of your attack on her."

The court heard that the pair had been drinking heavily and arguing throughout the day. Judge Rose rejected Lawton's claim that he had been provoked by Ms Egge-Bailey.

The judge told him: "From some time after your arrest for drink-driving you determined that you would take revenge on Michelle. Over the period of time between your arrest and the killing you made a decision to kill her, and that you took the knife from the kitchen drawer with the very clear intention of killing her."

Lawton, who had served in Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan, was said to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He has previous convictions for sexual assault - for which he was court-martialled from the army - as well as drink-driving and possession of Class A drugs.

The former serviceman was found guilty of murder last month after initially pleading guilty to manslaughter but not guilty to murder.