A father accused of killing a man after a single punch has been cleared of manslaughter.

Lorry driver Mark Cable claimed he was acting in self-defence and only pushed Paul Howarth in the chest.

Mr Howarth hit his head on the pavement as he fell after a row in Birchington and died in hospital two days later.

Maidstone Crown Court heard the 52-year-old was an alcoholic and Mr Cable said he was always drunk and making a nuisance of himself.

He and friends Matthew Lynch and Kerrie Mason had been drinking in a park in the village and smoking cannabis on April 9 last year.

In the early evening they were walking along Lymington Road, approaching a junction with Stone Barn Avenue, where Mr Cable lived.

Mr Cable, 47, was just about to drive off in his car to deliver a DVD to a neighbour when Mr Howarth made a comment about his noisy fanbelt.

An argument ensued and the prosecution alleged Mr Cable snapped and punched the victim once on the jaw.

His head hit the kerb and became wedged between a car tyre and the kerb.

Paramedics took Mr Howarth, of Park Lane, Birchington, to the QEQM Hospital in Margate.

He was placed on a life support machine but did not regain consciousness.

Mr Cable, who denied manslaughter, told police: "He gets in my face when he has had a drink and when he is with his mates.

"I asked him four times to do himself a favour and go away and he still persisted."

He said in evidence Mr Howarth had can of beer in one hand and his dog on a lead in the other.

"He spun round to start to come towards me," he said. "I thought he was going to attack me. I walked briskly towards him.

"I hadn't lost my temper. As I got closer, he had the can raised in his right hand.

"I thought he was going to hit me with it. He looked upset. I pushed him on the shoulder and told him to ---- off again.

"I used moderate force. He fell over. I just thought he was drunk. I didn't see any blood."

The jury of nine women and three men took just over seven-and-a-half hours to return a not guilty verdict.

Mr Howarth's wife and daughter were in court.

Judge Philip Statman told jurors: "These cases are never easy."