Grindr Date Killing Trial: Man Not Guilty of Murder, Found Guilty of Strangulation

Josh Baxter went on trial following Michael Barron's death A man has been found not guilty of killing his Grindr date after the pair met and engaged in 'high-risk' sex. Josh Baxter, 28, was accused of killing 38-year-old Michael Barron after Mr Barron had attended Baxter's flat in Blackley, north Manchester. The pair had exchanged explicit messages prior to meeting for the first time and Baxter tied up Mr Barron in his bed with rope. Prosecutors said Baxter choked Mr Barron's neck so hard that he fractured a bone and cartilage. Mr Barron, originally from Ireland, died after suffering a cardiac arrest following a lack of oxygen to the brain. Baxter denied manslaughter. He denied intentionally harming Mr Barron and said his death was an accident. His barrister claimed the evidence showed Mr Barron died 'inevitably because of alcohol poisoning'. After they had sex, Baxter ordered a takeaway on Deliveroo messaged several other men on Grindr and searched on Google: "If you accidentally kill someone by strangling them in sex do you go to prison." Baxter denied manslaughter; intentional strangulation or suffocation; and unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm. He was found not guilty of manslaughter, but guilty of intentional strangulation or suffocation, and unlawfully inflicting grievous bodily harm. The verdicts came after jurors at Minshull Street Crown Court deliberated for more than nine hours. Anne Whyte KC, prosecuting, said Baxter had 'quite specific sexual interests', which he told Mr Barron about in a message on Grindr after they connected. In the message, Baxter said he liked it 'rough' and asked if Mr Barron would let him 'choke him, tie him up, pull his hair, spit on him, call him names, get him so drunk he was weak and defenceless and punch him'. He also asked if Mr Barron would 'do rape role play'. "In other words, Josh Baxter was sexually motivated by high-risk sexual activity," said Ms Whyte KC. In the messages, Baxter and Mr Barron discussed what they liked and disliked sexually, with Mr Barron stating that he liked to be 'tied, gagged, hooded, totally helpless' and that he liked 'pain and torture'. Ms Whyte said: "We can see Mr Baxter telling Mr Barron that when he got to Mr Baxter's flat, Mr Barron would start drinking vodka until he was so drunk he could barely walk. Mr Baxter said he would then strip him and start raping and abusing him. Mr Barron consented to that and said Mr Baxter could force feed him vodka as well." Baxter said Mr Barron arrived at his flat at 4.27pm. They chatted about 'general things', including their favourite films. The pair then began talking about sex and what their 'limits' were. Baxter claimed Mr Barron said he did not want a 'safe word'. Prosecutors said while Mr Barron was consenting to certain acts, it was 'no defence' if Baxter foresaw the risk that what he was going to do would affect Mr Barron's breathing and that he might suffer serious harm as a result. "We suggest he foresaw the risk, and unreasonably took it precisely because the risks and control involved were part of the very specific sexual activity that he wanted to engage in," Ms Whyte KC said. In her closing speech, Louise Sweet KC, Baxter's barrister, said: "He [Mr Baxter] says if there is any possibility that he contributed to Mr Barron's death, it was not intended by him, and never did he imagine in a million years that he would come to harm, and therefore it was not reckless," Ms Sweet said. After Mr Barron arrived at the flat, they were both shown to have tried to source some Ketamine then later went to a shop to buy more alcohol. The last use of Mr Barron's phone was at 5.45pm when there was a short call to a drug dealer, it was said. Between 7pm and 7.56pm, Baxter also stopped using his phone and prosecutors said it can be 'reasonably inferred' that during that time they had sex. The court heard Baxter restrained Mr Barron face-down on his bed and lay on top of him for a 'prolonged period'. Ms Whyte said: "He was choked at some stage, it would appear as though he was restrained by his wrists and ankles face down throughout the sexual activity. We know from the police search at the scene that the sex involved the use of a makeshift mask on Mr Barron." At 7.56pm, Baxter messaged other Grindr users as Mr Barron remained restrained, lay on the bed. Baxter said he noticed Mr Barron's face was purple, but that he could hear snoring so believed that Mr Barron was not 'in trouble medically'. At around 9pm, Baxter ordered two chicken burgers, fries and onion rings on Deliveroo. After he collectedthe food from downstairs, Baxter said Mr Barron's face had turned 'deep purple' and that he could no longer hear any snoring. He carried out online searches, including 'purple face while sleeping'; 'how to tell if someone is alive'; and 'how to tell if someone is breathing'. He called 999 and was instructed to perform CPR on Mr Barron. In the early hours of January 27, he Googled 'is it illegal to f*** someone in their sleep even in you have their concent [sic]'; and 'if you accidentally kill someone by strangling them during sex do you go to prison'. Giving evidence, Baxter claimed the chats were 'fantasy' and that he never intended to hurt Mr Barron. Asked about choking, he added: "I never saw it as a dangerous activity." He maintained the injury had been inflicted accidentally. Speaking of the internet searches carried out by Baxter, Ms Sweet said he was in a situation of 'real trauma'. "There is no normal reaction, only shock, disbelief, anxiety, numbness, fear," she added. "He was scared about what people would think of what he and Mr Barron had been doing." She said his flatmate described him as 'shy' and a 'bit of a geek'. "He loves gaming, he goes out with his mum, he goes to bingo with his mum," she said. "Nobody has a bad word to say about him." Ms Sweet told jurors: "We invite you to conclude he is not guilty and committed no crime and did not contribute in any way to Mr Barron's death. It was an accident and he is a good man - a bit of a geek, but not a criminal." Baxter, of Lakeside Rise, Blackley, is due to be sentenced next month. He was remanded in custody.