Man cleared of manslaughter

Wednesday, December 6, 2023

A door supervisor has been cleared of killing a man he punched outside a Lancaster nightclub.

We were called at shortly before 4.30am on Sunday June 12 to a report that a man had been punched during an altercation outside Glow nightclub, Dalton Square, causing him to fall and hit his head on the ground.

The man, Joshua Hughes, 22, who was part of a group who had been inside the club earlier but had been ejected, was taken to hospital in a critical condition.

Despite the best efforts of medical professionals, Mr Hughes, of Morecambe, died on the morning of June 16.

Sean Orrell, 33, of Leigh was charged with manslaughter but was acquitted today (December 6) following a trial at Preston Crown Court.

Senior Investigating Officer Det Chief Insp Jane Webb, of the Force Major Investigation Team, said: “First and foremost my thoughts are with Joshua Hughes’ loved ones at this time. This is a tragic case where a young man has lost his life and once again, we have seen the tragic consequences that can result from a single punch.

“As always, we worked very closely with the Crown Prosecution Service and all of the evidence was subjected to careful scrutiny before a decision was taken to charge and to put this before a jury. The burden of proof in our system is quite rightly very high and I would like to thank the jury for giving this case their full and careful consideration.

“I know what happened to Joshua caused a huge amount of distress in the local community and I would appeal for calm at this time in respect for Joshua and his family.”