A jury has finished hearing evidence in the trial into the alleged murder of Bristol father-of-three Shaun Godfrey.

It is claimed Mr Godfrey, 26, a carpenter, was ambushed by a gang on the last Friday before Christmas, who lay in wait with a .22 calibre rifle and shot him through the heart at the junction of Pavey Road and Briscoes Avenue in Hartcliffe.

Three men deny murder. They are Mark Hodge, 20, of Fulford Road, Hartcliffe; Mark Starr, 20, whose address has been withheld by court order, and Nathan Sargent, 24, of Lynton Road, Bedminster.

Sargent, however, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

A fourth man, Jason Williams, 18, of Whitland Road, Hartcliffe, faces a murder charge but has been ruled unfit to stand trial due to learning disability, requiring the jury only to decide if he committed the act.

While Sargent has given evidence to the jury and told them he only intended to use the rifle as a distraction to enable his friends to beat up Mr Godfrey, neither Hodge or Starr took to the witness box.

Richard Smith QC, defending Williams, told the jury the teenager had been seen by two psychiatrists and a psychologist and he had been found to have an IQ rating of 58, which put him in the bottom one per cent of the population.

Mr Smith said his client was recognised as having mental impairment and would therefore struggle to concentrate and his ability to process information was impaired – and further impaired with emotion or alcohol intake.

He also said it was agreed Williams would not necessarily think through consequences of instructions for himself and would be unable to interpret circumstances or identify possible consequences of other people's actions.

The case will continue on Monday at Bristol Crown Court when Ian Pringle QC, prosecuting, is set to make his closing speech to the jury.