A man who stabbed his neighbour to death has been cleared of murder and manslaughter.
Jeffrey Kelly fatally knifed Derek Burns in the heart during a heated dispute at the block of flats where they lived on Newsham Drive in Tuebrook. But the 56-year-old was today unanimously cleared of murdering the dad-of-two by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court.
He was also acquitted of manslaughter after six hours and two minutes of deliberations. Kelly put his head back in relief as the verdict was delivered.
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But Mr Burns' family were angered by the decision. One man stormed out of the courtroom, slamming a door as he left, before being followed by a woman who shouted: "So what, he's not guilty of murdering someone?"
Judge Denis Watson KC told jurors: "Cases like this are really difficult. It is very evident to me that you paid the closest attention to all the issues in this case - you did so much with such diligence and patience, and I thank you for it"
A trial previously heard the pair spent the afternoon of May 15 this year drinking together before a disagreement erupted over building work. Mr Burns then followed Kelly back to his apartment, and while he managed to shut the front door behind him, his flatmate - who had armed himself with a kitchen knife - began kicking at it.
The killer picked up a steak knife and opened the door, at which point he claimed that the deceased attacked him. Kelly said he acted in self-defence when inflicting three stab wounds to Mr Burn's chest and one to the upper neck, resulting in his death aged 49.
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