Pub landlord Kevin Browning and his wife Teresa have been cleared of manslaughter after a customer who drank a lethal cocktail collapsed and died. Customer Barry Gates, who was already drunk, downed three-quarters of a pint of spirits at the Kingston Tavern in Portsmouth. The cocktail included double measures of whisky, gin, vodka, brandy and rum.
He was goaded on by the Brownings, who told him he was a "chicken" unless he finished the drink and offered him £27 if he did. The judge at Winchester Crown Court halted the case, ruling that the couple had no legal
"duty of care" towards the dead man. However, he said they bore a moral responsibility for the man's death and should never be allowed to run another pub.
The Daily Telegraph 10/06/00 page 11
The Times 10/06/00 page 8
The Guardian 10/06/00 page 10
He was goaded on by the Brownings, who told him he was a "chicken" unless he finished the drink and offered him £27 if he did. The judge at Winchester Crown Court halted the case, ruling that the couple had no legal
"duty of care" towards the dead man. However, he said they bore a moral responsibility for the man's death and should never be allowed to run another pub.
The Daily Telegraph 10/06/00 page 11
The Times 10/06/00 page 8
The Guardian 10/06/00 page 10