A motorist involved in a fatal crash has been cleared of driving carelessly while under the influence of cannabis.

A jury took less than half an hour before finding NHS worker Christopher Henderson, from Prospect Road, Chatham, not guilty of killing Ty Andrews.

Mr Andrews, 33, died as he lay in the road in Maidstone Road, Rochester, in August 2020.

He was struck by a Nissan driven by Mr Henderson who had admitted smoking cannabis earlier in the day – something he had done regularly since he was 20 to help with anxiety.

Mr Henderson, 32, told a jury at Maidstone Crown Court how he had spent the evening at a friend's house before having to drive along Maidstone Road as his usual route home was closed.

He said that he was fit to drive that night, and disputed the findings of the police impairment test, saying he had performed better than what was recorded.

He said: "In my eyes, I hadn't had a joint for hours and hours so I assumed there would be nothing in my system.

"I felt fine to drive. I didn't feel intoxicated. I didn't feel under the influence in any way, shape or form."

He told the jury as he drove along Maidstone Road he became aware of what he thought was a binbag.

He said he was about 24ft away when he first spotted something in the road.

Mr Henderson wept as he recalled the moment he saw an "object" ahead, turned his car to the right, and then realised he had driven over a person.

"From such a short distance I don't think my mind had worked out it was a person. In that millisecond when the car went over him, I knew," he said.

"I remember the front wheel going over him and I guess both wheels would have gone over him.

"I think I assumed it was a person because it felt different. It wouldn't be an animal because it wouldn't be big enough to feel that in a car."

He added: "I screamed. Just the initial shock of realising it could be a person. I think I hit the horn. I hit the steering wheel, pulled over and stopped, opened the car door and ran to what I found out was Ty."

Mr Henderson denied causing Mr Andrew's death by driving carelessly while under the influence of drugs.

The court heard how he assisted police with CPR but Mr Andrews died at the scene from chest and abdominal injuries.

Subsequent tests showed he would have been about twice the legal drink-drive limit at the time.

The court heard other vehicles had managed to avoid hitting Mr Andrews, including the driver of a Tesla who rang police to warn them of "a drunk man just laying in the middle of the road".

It was eight minutes after the Tesla had driven past Mr Andrews that the fatal accident happened.

Mr Henderson admitted a charge of possessing a small quantity of cannabis and received a 12-month conditional discharge.