THE jury in the trial of a west Cumbrian man who is accused manslaughter has been discharged for legal reasons.

Lewis Knight, 29, denies the manslaughter of 39-year-old Marc Wright, who died in Whitehaven on March 28, 2021.

Prosecutors allege that Knight, of Beach Road, St Bees, punched Mr Wright in the ribs during a dispute over a debt on March 22, 2021, causing a rib fracture which led to fatal internal bleeding.

At Carlisle Crown Court, Judge Nicholas Barker formally discharged the jury and set a date for a further hearing on October 3 when the date for a new trial – likely to be next year – will be agreed.

In the meantime, Knight was granted bail with a single condition - that he must have no contact with any of five named prosecution witnesses, including the mother of Mr Wright.

Judge Barker stopped the trial, which has been running all week, for legal reasons which cannot at this stage be reported.