Jury clears teen over fatal staircase row

A teenager, who had been accused of killing his girlfriend's neighbour by kicking him down a flight of stairs during a row, has been found not guilty of manslaughter.

Sean Howson, 56, died in hospital three days after the incident at flats in Albany Road, Skegness, last July.

Aston Harris, 19, of Uffington Avenue, Lincoln, was on trial at Lincoln Crown Court accused of the manslaughter of Howson, which he denied.

Harris was cleared of the offence on Tuesday after the jury deliberated for four hours.

The court heard Howson was drinking with a friend in his garden at about 20:30 BST on 3 July when an argument broke out with Harris.

Jurors heard Howson climbed the stairs from his ground-floor flat to the first-floor property where Harris was staying with his girlfriend.

The prosecution alleged Harris delivered an unlawful kick that caused Howson to fall down the stairs.

Giving evidence, Harris insisted he did not want to hurt Howson and was only protecting himself when he delivered the kick.

Harris said he panicked and grabbed a bag when he saw blood after Howson fell backwards.

Jurors heard Harris fled to a park but approached a police officer five hours later and said he was defending himself.

"It felt horrible to know he died," Harris told the court.

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